Affectation
by tx-fictionqueen
Summary: Newly single Sheldon finds himself plagued by urges that were never there before and he discovers an unconventional way to cope. It isn't long before Penny finds herself along for the ride. *Rated M for sexual content and Dark Sheldon. If you can't handle the heat, get out of the kitchen*
1. One

**A/N: I couldn't stay away! I needed some more Shenny in my life. **

**Warning: Y'all know me—I like my Sheldon Cooper dark, and as the story progresses, his character will eventually become slightly OOC, but that's the fun of fan fiction, right? And this story will contain adult language and sexual content (starting in this chapter) so you have been warned! I hope you guys enjoy it :]**

**First & only disclaimer:** **I do not own rights to The Big Bang Theory or any of their characters or likenesses. Everything else is mine.**

* * *

The subtle squeaks of his mattress springs sliced through the silence as he found his rhythm. His arms were tired as he held himself upright; he felt like he was poised to do a push-up. The crisp, clean, navy blue sheets of his bed covered the lower half of his body at a perfect angle, but the perspiration forming on his back was proving to be a distraction as they clung to his spine. He hated the feel of sweat on his body, but he could hardly pay attention to this small detail when the rest of his body was otherwise engaged in what could be deemed a far more unsanitary act. To distract himself, he gazed around his room with wandering eyes, but kept his head stationary. The last time he allowed himself to look around during coitus, he got bitched out for a week.

His eyes averted to the left, towards his window. _There_, he thought with a flit of hope. _There's a noticeable gap between the frame of the window and the rest of my wall that is missing paint. _

"My hair," a low voice said from under him, interrupting the scrutiny of his wall. He looked down and locked eyes with his girlfriend. "You're on my hair," she added.

"Oh," Sheldon mumbled. "My bad." He tentatively raised his palm, balancing his upper body weight on his other arm that was pillared on the left side of Amy's head, and his knees balanced his hips between her legs beneath the sheets. When she removed the stray strands of hair that had been caught underneath his hands and tucked them securely behind her ear, Sheldon returned his stance and immediately went back to staring at the spot on the wall. He lowered himself and spread his knees, bracing them against Amy's open thighs again before he resumed thrusting at the slow rhythm he had found earlier.

_How could I have never noticed that sliver of wall without paint? What kind of half-assed operation did this building manager run when furnishing the rooms of his tenants before I moved in? This is unacceptable. _

"Can you get rid of the sheet please, my legs are extremely sweaty."

Frowning, Sheldon removed his glare once again from the offending wall and gazed down at Amy, stopping mid-thrust. "Amy, you know I like to keep my lower body covered to prevent feeling a chill during our activities."

"Right," Amy said with a roll of her eyes. "But every time we do this, I sweat like a pig. It's very uncomfortable and frankly, unattractive."

Sheldon peered down at her with wide eyes, taking in her irritated features. Her forehead was filmed with a thin sheet of sweat, and the hollow of her neck below her pointy chin was also sprinkled with perspiration. He internally shrugged; the sweat on her didn't look so bad. The rest of her body that lied prone beneath him was equally as moist, and he had already gotten used to that.

"I'm almost done, Amy. Hold still, it won't be much longer."

"Sheldon, get off of me!" she suddenly shouted and fidgeted from beneath him. He immediately recoiled and drew up on his knees as she slapped his arms away from her head.

"What?" he asked as Amy squirmed off of his bed and began to gather her bra and panties from the floor. He immediately yanked the sheets up to cover his completely naked body and very quickly diminishing erection.

"I'm sorry, Sheldon," Amy said gruffly as she snapped her bra back on and pulled on her striped, button-up blouse. "This just isn't working for me."

"Amy," Sheldon said sternly. "Per our agreement, we engage in sexual activities twice a week, every week until one of us reaches completion or until the 30-minute mark has been reached, except on special occasions where I am obliged to provide my unflinching persistence in helping you come to completion such as birthdays and anniversaries. Being that it's only a date night, the primary standards of coitus stand. I was almost done, now if you'd please, get back into bed." Even as he said it, he wasn't sure it was what he wanted. But guidelines were not to be disavowed when it came to the sanctity of the Relationship Agreement.

By the time he finished talking, Amy had already fully clothed herself and reached for her glasses off of his nightstand. "Oh, fuck your agreement!" she barked.

Sheldon rocked back on his heels, wrapping the sheet securely around his body as he stared at her with a disapproving glare. "Ex_cuse _me?"

"You heard me." She stepped into her discarded shoes in the corner of the room and whirled her body around to face her boyfriend. "Sheldon, we have tried. We have _been _trying for months now. You can't tell me that this is pleasurable for you?" She motioned to the bed with her extended arm, her forehead creased in exasperation.

"Pleasurable?" Sheldon echoed. He returned Amy's look of exasperation, even if it were for a very different reason. He already agreed to her cockamamie demands of becoming more intimate a few months ago, starting the week after Leonard left for the North Sea, what more did she want from him? "Amy, I'm trying to do right by you in allowing this to even continue. Do you wish to suspend our sexual activities?"

"Sheldon," she started, placing her hands on her hips. "You are having sex to _do right by me_? What does that even mean?"

"It was your idea that you've been hammering on about for God knows how long, and now that we have finally gotten the routine down, now that I have finally become assimilated to this schedule and process, you're going to complain and make willy-nilly demands about bed sheets?"

"Sheldon, I was uncomfortable!"

"How do you think I feel, propped over you like a hovercraft for thirty minutes?"

Amy's jaw dropped, her mouth moving but no words would come out. Sheldon took the opportunity to speak again.

"Seriously, Amy, stop this nonsense and get back in bed before I employ section D-line 5 of the Agreement." A tiny part of him hoped she would make him do it. These tedious evenings were starting to weigh on his peace of mind.

"Are you threatening to withhold sex from me from now on if I don't let you 'finish'?"

"Well, you would be in direct breach of contract, so what other choice do I have? It would be the same way were I the one crawling out of bed during coitus and making a scene." Sheldon's eyebrows were high on his head as he mirrored Amy's fierce stare from across the room. They were both silent for a moment, daring the other to speak before a disturbance around his groin caught his attention. He peered down and lifted the sheet a bit to see that his erection had fully wilted, and the lower tip of the condom swung pitifully as his penis came to rest. Sighing, he looked back up to Amy. "Grab another condom, will you?"

"No," she said angrily, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Amy…" he warned. "I am in no mood. Let's hurry up and get this over with."

"We're done Sheldon. Suspend the Agreement, rip it up, or coil it nice and tight and shove it up your ass. I don't care! I'm done!" And with that, she rocketed out of the room, leaving her boyfriend with a red face and scowl. He heard his apartment door slam before he looked down and noticed Amy's purse still slung over the side of his headboard. Anticipating that she would return any moment to retrieve it once her delirious and unwarranted anger faded enough to realize that she did not have her car keys, Sheldon jumped up from the bed and carefully but quickly removed the botched condom from his member, tossing it in the trash can. Then he grabbed his robe, wrapping it around his body while he mumbled furiously to himself. He ripped her purse from the headboard and left his room, bustling down the hallway and entering the living area just in time to see his door swing open again.

"I forgot my purse," she spat, locking her eyes on her bag that Sheldon was holding.

"Amy, what on earth has gotten into you?" He thrust the purse into her hand and watched as she turned around to leave again but he stopped her, placing his large hand on her shoulder and keeping her from walking further. On impulse, he dug his fingers into her flesh.

"Sheldon!" Amy squealed, whirling around and ripping her shoulder out of his grasp. "That hurt!" She dropped her purse and her hand flew to her clavicle, gingerly rubbing the area that Sheldon's hand had gripped.

"Amy," Sheldon's voice softened and he took a tentative step towards her. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. I just don't want you to leave without explaining to me what is going on with you." He hadn't meant to grab her so roughly, but lately, during and after coitus, he had noticed that he became extremely agitated, even after he ejaculated. But now that he had been robbed of the opportunity of release, agitated was putting it mildly for what he felt at the moment.

"It's okay," Amy said, her frown spanning the length of her delicate face as she looked at Sheldon with unhappy eyes. "Look, I understand that your frustration is causing the neurotransmitters in your amygdala to severely react to the interruption of our sexual activities, but Sheldon, I don't want you to have sex with me because you're obligated…"

"But I _am _obligated to, Amy," Sheldon argued, throwing his hands up in the air. "That's why we drew up this amendment to the Agreement, was it not?" He could practically feel the steam curling out of his ears and he dug his fingers into his own crossed arms, wishing his girlfriend would hurry up and make a valid point.

"I…" Amy's eyes instantly filled with moisture as she gaped at him. She looked as though she wanted to say much, much more, but was unable to gather the ability to. Instead, she looked down as a few tears escaped and smoothed her cardigan over her skirt. Then she gazed up one more time and met Sheldon's eyes. "I hereby release you from your obligation."

Sheldon couldn't help but feel slightly relieved, but also alarmed. "Really, Amy?" He took another step towards her. "You mean it? No more sex?" He couldn't help but realize how hopeful his tone was.

"No, Sheldon, not just sex. No more relationship. I am through trying to coax the affection out of you. Hell, not just affection, some simple compassion." She held her hand up as he began to protest and continued. "I know you're not up to speed on social convention or human emotion, but why would you ever think that I wanted to become more intimate with you because it was an obligation? Sheldon, I cared about you. Didn't you care about me, too?" She waited for a few seconds as her boyfriend scoured the ground with his eyes, avoiding hers at all costs. His hands went behind his back and he hunched forward slightly, still silent.

"I have my answer," she said, her voice breaking. "I'll email you a PDF of my signed termination notice of our Relationship Agreement. Please do not contact me in the meantime."

Sheldon's eyes remained locked on the wooden tile of his floor like a scolded child long after Amy picked up her purse, gave him one last scathing look, wiped the tears from her face and exited the apartment, slamming the door behind her. After a few minutes, he finally trusted himself to walk away from the living room and down the hall to his bedroom. When he was inside, he shut the door behind him and leaned against it. He peered at his bed, the sheets still spotty from his and Amy's perspiration. Then his eyes flitted up and he spotted the gap of paint-less wall near his window. He fixated on the abnormality for 27 blissful, uninterrupted minutes. Then he went to his nightstand near his bed, picked up his iPhone, and performed a quick Google search on the closest Home Depot to his apartment.

He was going paint shopping tomorrow.

* * *

Penny hugged Amy tightly as they sat on her couch, listening to her friend cry softly. She was red in the face with how angry she was at Sheldon. How could he be so callous to Amy? So detached? Was it acceptable that he get his rocks off no matter how miserable Amy feels? No! It was totally wrong and insensitive on so many levels. Penny had offered to go across the hall and kick him in the nuts for Amy, but her tearful friend gratefully declined.

"No, Penny, it's about time I wise up anyhow." Amy's breath rattled as she tried to calmly breathe in. She removed her glasses to dab at her eyes with some tissue. "I was enamored with Sheldon for three years, until we started having sex. Then he just became a completely different person."

"Yeah, he became an asshole," Penny supplied, filling up both of their empty wine glasses with more Merlot.

"No, not all the time," Amy protested. She wearily looked up at her blonde friend. "Just when it came to sex. But I sort of can't blame him."

"What do you mean?"

"Well," she said. "It wasn't…that good."

"I wouldn't imagine sex with a robot being good," Penny grumbled before sipping her wine. When Amy didn't continue, she stole a look at her and immediately paled at how offended she looked. "I'm sorry, that was completely bitchy of me. Please, go on."

"No, it's just…" Amy sat back and stared at her hands. "I thought it would be better, you know? He's so attractive, so intelligent. I thought the first few times were just because he was nervous, but, it just never got better."

"Well, did you try switching positions?" Penny asked with a hint of discomfort. Picturing Sheldon nude and having sex wasn't exactly unappealing, but it was definitely out of her comfort zone. She was in agreement with Amy in believing sex with him would be good. _Not _that Penny had ever thought about doing it with him, no. Just the whole tall guys with big feet and long fingers urban legend going to work in her mind. Penny had a very overactive imagination. She took another big gulp of her wine and shook her head, ridding herself of those thoughts.

"It's not that it didn't _feel _good," Amy said again, carefully and deliberately. "Penny, he's huge."

She was mid-swallow when the wine steered off course, causing Penny to choke on the liquid. She coughed into her hand, sputtering pitifully. "I'm sorry, what did you say?"

"He's huge!" Amy repeated miserably. "He's everything I thought he would be. And T.M.I. alert—it didn't matter what position we were in, he filled me to the brim. Every. Time."

Penny couldn't help but gawk. _Well, this is an interesting development_, she thought. "Well, screw him anyway, Amy. Big dick or not, you did not deserve the way he treated you." She sat quietly for a moment as Amy continued to stare at her hands. "Wait, why are you singing the praises of his size? When Leonard and I broke up, I was intent on letting the entire world know how tiny his dick was. Is." She offered Amy a smile.

"Well, Leonard deserved that," Amy insisted. "He cheated on you with Sheldon's assistant. The bastard deserves to have the tiny thing chopped off." She watched as Penny nodded enthusiastically. "But Sheldon didn't do anything to me that I didn't already have coming."

"Amy," Penny began, shaking her head in protest, but Amy quickly cut her off.

"Really, Penny. Sheldon and I…the sex wasn't good because there was no chemistry. Zero. I heard a cricket once, I swear. And even though I could tell he was just as unhappy as I was, we both insisted that we continue subjecting ourselves to the humiliation of that stupid agreement." She sighed and took a sip of her own wine as Penny's heart broke a little for her. "Which sort of leads me to believe that at some point, Sheldon really did try to make me happy. At least, he tried to make it work. Tonight he was probably just tired of pretending, as am I.

"I always thought that Sheldon was all I ever wanted. That sex with him would be perfect. But with sex came clarity. We are just not as perfectly matched as I had dreamt we would be."

"Sweetie, I'm sorry," Penny said sincerely. "It happens. It's not something any of us can anticipate. But you were right to push Sheldon into finally having sex. You had to find out sometime whether or not you were compatible. Better three years later than 10 years later, am I right?"

"You sure are, bestie," Amy agreed, finally giving Penny the smile she had been waiting for all night. "I will be alright. I'll miss him as a friend, but for now I think I need to keep my distance from him, until all of this humiliation fades away. But can I ask you a favor?"

"Of course."

"Don't give him a hard time about this. Sheldon is a very private person, as you all know. I don't hate him and I don't want him thinking I'm out for blood. It just…didn't work out between us."

Penny smiled brightly at her friend. "Amy, you are truly one of a kind. You're going to find someone who can appreciate that one day. That and so much more."

They clinked their wine glasses together in a silent toast and took small sips, Amy feeling slightly optimistic about her future and new freedom, Penny feeling slightly worried that maybe Sheldon had no deal after all and would be doomed to remain alone for the rest of his days.

* * *

Three days later, Sheldon was alone in his apartment with his thoughts.

When Amy first came to him with the direct question of whether or not they would ever be intimate, he was unsure of how to answer. Ideally, Sheldon would have shut her down right then and there, truthfully confided in her that having intimate relations with Amy was not something that appealed to him. He truly did covet their relationship of the mind, but even a socially awkward duck like Sheldon knew, as he peered into her eyes that night when they sat on his bed, that answering with this blunt honesty would surely devastate her.

So, out of fear of losing her all together, he finally agreed to a test run.

Their first time was extremely quick and dry. Literally dry, being that Amy had never fully achieved self-lubrication due to the lack of foreplay, and neither of their naked bodies had a sufficient amount of time to accumulate sweat as Sheldon pumped into her twice and was done. He had been embarrassed by his premature arrival, especially because it was his first time having sex, but Amy was beaming, chocking it up to her sex appeal. Sheldon didn't have the nerve to explain that he had not engaged in the suggested pre-coital self-abuse that the guys had told him to do in hopes of lasting longer during sex, and so he smiled tightly and nodded. Afterward, they hastily drew up the sexual activities amendment to the Relationship Agreement, and after Amy left to go home, Sheldon spent the rest of the night tossing and turning in his own bed, trying to convince himself that next time might be better.

The next time was longer, but not better. Neither was the one after that. Or that.

Every session concluded with Sheldon ejaculating mutely, Amy being the blunt tool he manipulated to achieve orgasm, shutting his eyes tight as she placed soft kisses on his shoulders or neck. One would think that completion would be the ultimate goal, but he was never satisfied afterward. Amy always persisted in attempting foreplay and dirty talk, the latter of which he never felt comfortable with engaging in. He relished his intellectual talks with Amy, and in gutturally moaning demands for her to "suck his cock" like she once suggested, Sheldon felt foolish, cheap. But since he was a perfectionist, a man that simply refused to fail, he continued on, believing that practice would truly make perfect.

He realized after the first month that his agitation was growing after sex. He couldn't understand his sour disposition and disinterest in getting closer to Amy after each session. Wasn't sex supposed to release stress? How come he was much more wound up after sex than before? Sheldon wasn't an expert on emotion by any means, but he had watched enough movies and had listened to his friends' adventures in relationships long enough to understand that sex was supposed to bring a couple closer together, not drive you further apart.

_And Amy must have finally realized the same thing_, Sheldon thought with a hint of melancholy as he printed out the PDF of their terminated Relationship Agreement, stamped it with his notary equipment, then filed it away in his desk drawer's file cabinets. He sighed and leaned back in his chair, gazing at the Internet Explorer browser icon on the screen of his laptop. Hesitating long enough to remember that Leonard was staying with his new girlfriend, and Sheldon's former assistant, Alex for the night, he double-clicked on the IE icon and logged onto his Facebook page.

Sheldon had long since realized that Amy just didn't, for a lack of a better term, get his motor running. He developed erections quickly enough around her, but only because he understood that his endocrine system was just in tip-top shape. He learned after the first few trial runs that with the proper position and condoms, the germ exchange was easily contained. He became used to the sex, but could never attest that his arousal was due to intensifying feelings for her. He was a man with functioning genitalia; when sex was presented to him, he became anatomically excited. So if anyone were to accuse Sheldon of being a robot, which many did, they would be sorely mistaken.

Even with this understanding, he still felt slightly ashamed for what he was about to do. He clicked a few times to find his friends list and after scrolling down some, he finally arrived at his destination. There was one particular companion that months ago, before he began having sex with Amy, he would include in his weekly masturbatory sessions. He took slight comfort in realizing he could once again incorporate this certain someone in his self-abuse without guilt, now that he was a single man again.

After two more clicks, her page appeared. Her profile picture was a self-portrait of her head only, her succulent, glossy lips pushing forward and together while her straight, blonde locks framed her heart-shaped face. She had on a pair of large aviator glasses that regrettably covered up her green eyes, Sheldon's favorite feature on her. He clicked on her default pic to pull up the entire profile picture album, and sifted through some recently added images. Scrolling down with one hand, he used the other to unzip his fly and pry it apart, and then he pushed down on his briefs. He wasn't completely hard yet, so he carefully pulled out his flesh over his underwear, using his thumb and index finger to stroke some life into his thick skin. Finally, he arrived at a new picture he had not yet seen before, being that it had been so long since he had last needed this page.

"Yes," he murmured, clicking on the thumbnail and waited for a second for the image to load. "This will certainly do." He threw one last glance at the front door, making sure the bolt was turned to the left and the chain was on its track. Satisfied that there would be no interruptions, Sheldon felt his skin tighten as his erection sprang to life, and he closed his fist around himself, slowly pumping as he studied the contours of his neighbor Penny's tanned, toned body in a tiny baby blue bikini as she floated on a hot pink raft above water. The angle of the picture was from above, as though someone had stood on the edge of the in-ground pool and snapped the photo with a cellular device.

In the picture, Penny was pouting seductively and the tip of her tongue curled up in a suggestive way, touching the top of her upper lip. She held a red Solo cup, no doubt filled with alcohol, in one hand. The other hand was, Sheldon gulped in realization, cupping her right breast roughly, so roughly in fact that he could clearly see her nails digging into her skin.

Errant thoughts of disapproval that Penny would post such very nearly pornographic picture on the internet for all to see threatened to distract him, so he fought the urge to chastise his friend for using her and Leonard's break-up as an excuse to "go wild" and instead focused on her titillating pose. As he stroked faster, running his closed fist over the head and using the pre-ejaculate he found there to lubricate his movements, his eyes became heavy and lidded as they tried to focus on her soft, pink tongue darting out of her mouth. More thoughts of slight envy surfaced as he wondered who took that picture and if they also enjoyed the suggestive pose. He shook his head, his lips slightly parting as his breath became shallow. He leaned back in his chair, focusing still on Penny's slender figure that curved perfectly at the hips and thighs as she reclined on the flotation device, staring back at Sheldon, liking the way he fisted his cock.

"Penny," he moaned, surprising himself. This had not, by far, been the first time he used one of her pictures to masturbate, but it was never personal, never by desire. It was mostly because she had the most sexually attractive attributes on a female that he had ever come across, and achieving orgasm to her image had proved most efficient, the fastest way to get him there. So he bit his lip, refusing to say her name anymore as his orgasm came around the corner.

"Mmmm…" He grimaced and bucked slightly, once, twice, and three times into his own tight grip, then he came to the imagined vision of Penny's tongue running a lap over his erection.

It rocked him harder than he had anticipated, the warm expansion that had been tumbling in his lower abdomen and spread to his testicles, causing him to cry out softly and throw his head back. He felt the hot, sticky release drip down his fingers and some of it spurted onto his t-shirt. He had rolled away from his desk at the last minute so he didn't catch any on his laptop, which unfortunately had happened before. Sighing as his heart raced in the euphoric moments after coming, he closed his eyes, immediately ready to stop looking at Penny's picture now that it had served its purpose.

Leaning over to his open desk drawer that held the Kleenex, he quickly wiped his hands and the sensitive skin of his member before tossing the tissue in the trash bin beneath his desk. He reached for the Purell and relished the smell of lemon invading his nostrils. When he was done sanitizing, he zipped his pants back up and swiped the mouse pad of the laptop to close the window, his eyes still heavy but now with fatigue instead of lust. Without realizing it, he accidentally tapped his mouse over the link beneath the picture that said _'Like'_ before the pointer reached the '_X_' in the top right hand corner of the screen. He clicked it and the browser was gone along with the pent up stress of his break-up.

For now, anyway.

* * *

Penny hated living across the hall from her ex-boyfriend. In fact, it had been one of the main reasons she had once been too afraid to get involved with the geeky bastard six years ago. If things went wrong, and they definitely went wrong, the humiliation of bumping into him on the staircase everyday was enough to make her want to die with embarrassment and regret. But she was also angry. Why should _she _feel humiliated when he was the one who screwed Alex Jensen behind her back?

Their relationship now ruined because the bitch apparently showed him the proper respect and attention after he returned triumphant from his North Sea voyage. Well excuse Penny for not falling down her on her knees and receiving his penis in her mouth just because he did a bunch of experiments for four months on a boat.

She had been extremely proud of Leonard, and had missed him tremendously, so she tried to keep him focused on getting their relationship back on track as soon as he returned. But he mistook it for her not appreciating his newfound fame among the science community. Penny had even asked Sheldon to explain to her what Leonard had accomplished, but that was a lost cause. Sheldon refused to teach her anything else about physics after their first round of student-teacher experiments three years ago.

Penny was devastated after Leonard admitted to his indiscretion with Alex a few weeks after his return, but even more devastated by the fact that he did not ask for another chance or even for forgiveness. He wanted to do the right thing by Penny and end it face-to-face.

"We gave it a good run," he had told her just before turning and leaving her in her apartment to weep for days. The only visitor she allowed to come by the first day was Sheldon, who had gallantly announced that he immediately fired Alex upon learning of her imprudent behavior and awarded Leonard two strikes, which put him over so he would now have to take the class.

"Why two strikes?" Penny asked through tears. She waited for Sheldon to flee at the sight of her raw emotional turmoil, but instead, he joined her on the couch and leaned into her, making sure she had her eyes on his.

"Because he sullied my reputation by taking that whore to bed, forcing me to get rid of her and undertake the grueling task of having to find another assistant when he _knows _I don't like people on principle."

"Oh," Penny smiled weakly, lowering her face and placed it in her hands as she closed her eyes.

"And the other is for hurting you."

Her head snapped up as she locked eyes with Sheldon once more, reading the genuine anger across his face. They didn't say anything for awhile before he nodded curtly and rose to leave. At the door, he turned and faced Penny one more time. "I'm right across the hall if you need me." Then he was gone.

And weeks later, now that Penny had finally begun to rise out of bed every morning with shards of dignity still attached to her, finally figured out a schedule in which she could optimize times to leave her apartment and not run into Leonard, she found herself upset again. This time because she knew Sheldon was going through a break-up of his own, and although she still found his behavior towards Amy to be abhorrent, she took Amy's words to heart. The two of them just weren't a great match, and Sheldon, being clueless in social situations to begin with, made the best of a bad situation. She could understand that his exasperation with trying to be something he wasn't would drive him to treat her that way.

So, in order to show her support for Sheldon as well, just like he showed her support after his best friend dumped her, Penny decided to put on a brave face and head over to the apartment and have dinner with Raj, Howard, Sheldon and even Leonard, for old time's sake. She had sent Leonard a short text earlier, letting him know she would be there. She wasn't going to ask for his permission because it wasn't just his apartment, and she knew that she was always welcome into Sheldon's home anytime. Penny also hoped her assertive message would speak volumes to Leonard to make sure he knew that his new girlfriend wasn't invited.

After she finished brushing her hair, she grabbed her cell phone and absently checked the screen before placing it in her back pocket. She yanked it out one more time and noticed the Facebook icon in the upper left hand corner of the screen. She hardly ever got on the site anymore, only to upload hot pictures of herself having a great time with friends just in case Leonard ever felt the need to graze through her profile and get a good look at what he let go.

Tapping on the screen as she exited her apartment and closed the door behind her, she saw that it was a notification that her friend Sheldon Cooper had "liked" one of her pictures a few days ago. Curious as to which one, she clicked on the notification and seconds later, the image of her in a very small bikini that left little to the imagination appeared on her screen.

She was in front of the apartment 4A when she paused, her mouth dropping open into an _O _of surprise.

"What?" she asked herself aloud, hitting 'BACK' on her screen to make sure that the notification was from Sheldon Cooper. Sure enough, it was the lanky physicist himself who apparently liked her picture enough to make it known. It seemed like a bold move, and she couldn't help but feel a little flattered. But at the same time, she wondered what his angle was. Was he trying to make Amy jealous by liking one of Penny's pictures? He had a history of attempting to use Penny in order to do this very thing before, haphazardly asking her on a date once. She frowned and placed her phone back in her pocket, deciding to mull it over later and stay focused at the task at hand. She took a deep breath and raised her fist to knock on the door, but decided against it and opened it instead.

* * *

Sheldon was in the middle of rolling his eyes and arguing with Howard when the apartment door nudged open. A split-second later, Penny's blonde head peeked in, peering directly at Sheldon first. For some reason, this interrupted the point he was about to make to the engineer and he found himself abruptly burning, a blush crawling up to his cheeks. Thoughts of days ago when he willingly pulled up that Facebook picture of Penny to relieve himself flooded his brain and for the life of him he could not figure out why. He had used her picture before without this type of reaction! Whatever it was he was feeling, it proved to be a huge distraction as Howard mistook his silence for concession.

"See, Sheldon? I guess you don't know everything after all." He smiled smugly at Raj and turned in his seat from the couch to eye Penny at the door. "Hey, Penny."

"Hey, guys," she said with a bright smile, purposely meeting all four of them in the eye, even Leonard who was seated in the arm chair perpendicular to Sheldon. "Is there any pizza left?"

"Yes," Leonard said quickly, giving her an eager smile. "Sit down, I'll get you a plate."

"That's not necessary," Penny objected and walked swiftly to the kitchen before Leonard could get out of his chair.

Sheldon watched Penny open the cupboards and reach up high for a plate, her jeans extremely tight as usual, but looked away when she turned back around to join them in the living area.

"Hey Sheldon," she said, taking the open spot next to him on the couch. "How are you doing?" She gave him a pathetic pout and he huffed derisively.

"I'm fine Penny, thank you for asking," he said shortly. "As I told everyone else though, my terminated relationship with Amy Farrah Fowler is not up for discussion and any mention of such will result in me retiring to my room early." He forced himself to look at Penny and was relieved to feel his embarrassment float away as soon as he caught the roll of her eye. "I'm serious, Penny. Zip the lip."

"Fine!" she relented, turning away from him and scowling. "Just trying to be a good friend."

"Well there are plenty of ways you can do that without bringing up my personal business. For instance, you can stop breaking into my apartment early in the morning to steal milk."

"Hey, you haven't caught me doing that in like a month," she insisted, looking around at the three other guys for back up.

"Penny, just because I don't rush out of my room to catch you in the act anymore does not mean I can't hear you fiddling around in the kitchen almost every day. Especially when you slam around with those man hands." Sheldon felt himself relax further, realizing his initial shame at seeing Penny was just a fluke of judgment. This was just the same old Penny. There was no way she could know that he had used her image for pleasure.

To further drive his point home, she then took a bite of pizza and chewed for a moment before opening her mouth and crassly exposing the contents to Sheldon.

"Good Lord," he mumbled.

"Don't worry, Penny," Howard said. "Sheldon's just a little more crabby than usual on account of his…" he hesitated as Sheldon's head whipped up and glared at him. "…well, you know. Anyway, me and Raj have the perfect idea to help you out, Sheldon."

"I'm not interested in artificial women, Howard," Sheldon said dryly as he picked up his own slice of pizza and took a bite. He heard Penny chuckle and felt his own lips turn up slightly.

"No, hear me out," Howard persisted. "Three words: Anonymous. Sex. Party."

This time, Sheldon heard Penny choke a little on her food. He looked at her with alarm, checking to see if she would require CPR, but then she swallowed down a few gulps of water from a previously unopened bottle on the coffee table and turned to glare at Howard.

"You're disgusting, Wolowitz!" she cried.

"Yeah, even I have to say that's pretty creepy," Leonard chimed in quietly.

"Dude, what do you not get about those three words?" Raj asked, looking at Leonard. "They're all great on their own; put them together and they're a good time."

"Why are you looking at me?" Leonard said, suddenly sinking back into his arm chair and taking his plate of pizza with him. "I'm not interested in anonymous sex."

Sheldon gave him a thoughtful look before he turned and faced Penny. He was taken aback by how a blush across her face reached the tip of her ear. She was avoiding eye contact with all of them.

"Just because you're in a relationship doesn't mean you have to suck all the fun out the single life for Sheldon!" Immediately, Howard bit down on his tongue, realizing he was talking to Leonard about his relationship with Alex in front of Penny. Sheldon could have smacked him with the back of his hand.

"Howard, Raj," he said, placing his plate of food down on the coffee table. "No one here is interested in listening to you speak for the rest of the evening. I'm not an expert on relationships, obviously, but I am led to believe by common sense that a married man, such as yourself Howard, would be ill-conceived to speak of such raucous things as 'anonymous sex parties'. I'm sure Bernadette would be less than pleased to hear about this."

"Wow, so you're gonna narc on me?" Howard asked defensively. Raj remained quiet but quickly swatted Howard's arm, warning him to shut up. "I'm not saying that I go to these parties. We just heard about it and thought it'd be perfect for you. Now that Amy isn't around to put out…"

"Okay, Howard," Leonard spoke up, but it was too late. Sheldon threw his plate down and jumped up from the couch. He turned and gave everyone a meaningful glare, and then it rested on Penny for reasons he could not readily explain. She gazed up at him with an almost sorry look, but he shook his head and retreated into his bedroom, just like he had warned them he would.

He slammed his door behind him and began to pace.

_Sex_! Sheldon thought furiously. _Is that all these people think about?_

He rushed over to his dresser and clenched the sides of the oak with his palms, gripping tightly to ground himself. Sheldon turned his neck and scowled at the wall, glaring at the same spot by the window with the sliver of paint missing. The day after he and Amy broke up, he made the trip to the hardware store and had bought three different cans of paint. He tested them on small sheets of paper to compare them to the paint on the wall, but none of them were the correct shade. It was like the color was one of a kind, unique and unattainable. He was doomed to stare at that sliver of wall forever.

Just like he would forever be doomed with this insatiable craving for release.

It seemed that ever since he finally lost his virginity, an unappeasable monster had been unleashed. He tried to pretend that it was all in his head. That maybe he was just feeling stuck on a problem etched on his whiteboard, or even, grudgingly admitting that he had some residual feelings of abandonment since his relationship with Amy ended. But none of these possibilities led him to the reason of _why _he was feeling so suspended, so unfulfilled.

He knew he should have never let that vixen Amy convince him to start engaging in coitus. Now his brain was wired to receive it twice a week, just like he had been getting it in accordance with the Relationship Agreement. Every Thursday and Sunday night, he felt the pangs start low in his loins, the tingling anticipation that he would receive sex and the inevitably painful erection to boot. But now, as much as he was trying to rewire his psyche to understand that these activities were no longer an option, he simply could not satiate the thirst for sexual release. Which was why his masturbation rituals had become more frequent and intense, and the main focal point of his self-abuse had been that image of Penny.

Sheldon had not gone back to her page in the last few days, scared of how much he craved seeing her in her skimpy clothing and suggestive poses. If only he could figure out a way to satisfy his needs without involving anyone he knew. He couldn't ask Amy to return and be his "friend with benefits". He couldn't keep thinking of Penny this way because they were friends, and he didn't trust himself to continue envisioning her in his fantasies and still be able to interact with her on a daily basis.

What was a man in his position to do?

Frowning deeply, Sheldon walked over to his bed and collapsed, falling on his back and staring up at his ceiling. He felt his iPhone slip out of his slacks and he picked it up, tapping the screen and pulled up the mobile browser.

Quickly, before he could change his mind, Sheldon thumbed in the words 'anonymous sex party' into the search engine and waited for the results.


	2. Two

**A/N: Holy cow. The reviews, follows & favorites and recommendations! Totally did not expect that…so thank you! It means so much to me. Keep 'em comin'. ;]**

**Also, I will not be including any spoilers for season 7. No worries.**

* * *

"Okay, he's not going to his room to retrieve a weapon in which to slay me with…is he?"

Howard was the first to speak after the rattling from Sheldon's bedroom door slamming shut ceased. Penny was still facing the direction of the hallway while the guys talked amongst themselves.

"Told you it was a bad idea to bring it up," Raj said in a low voice.

"It's not like I said, 'Grab your wallet Sheldon, we're taking you to a whore house!'" Howard argued, setting his plate of pizza down on the coffee table. "Hey, when I broke up with Leslie Winkle, you guys drove me to Vegas and bought me a hooker. Don't make me sound like the bad guy, here."

"Yeah, but it wasn't like she was your first hooker," Raj countered.

"Exactly," Leonard chimed in. "And it's just a little early for you to bringing up promiscuous sex as a mean of comfort. It's barely been a week. You never know; he and Amy could get back together." He said this with a wistful, almost gooey look on his face.

At this, Penny's eyes finally tore away from the empty hallway and focused on her ex-boyfriend before her. She wondered just how happy he was with Alex that he could freely speak of other relationships with such optimism, and _in front of her_ to boot. A sudden flashback of Penny crying on her bedroom floor the night they broke up cascaded over her vision, coupled with a pang of sudden sadness, momentarily stunning her. Quickly, she yanked herself back into reality and stiffened her upper lip; Sheldon and Amy were not going to get back together. Leonard had no idea what he was talking about.

There was no such thing as happily ever after.

She stared him down and his shoulders drooped a bit under her scrutinous glare. "I'm gonna go check on Sheldon," she announced after a moment of uncomfortable silence.

"I wouldn't," Leonard said meekly, cautiously meeting her eye as she rose to her feet. "He's been sort of crazy lately about being alone. He's been more quiet and isolated. It's scarier than when he's got his ominous music on." He looked down and leaned his head to the side. "Last time I knocked on his door after he retired for the evening, he ripped it open and stared at me with the soulless, empty eyes of a mad man then asked if I had forgotten the symbolistic meaning of a closed door."

Penny considered him for a moment before looking over her shoulder at Raj and Howard, who were staring right back at her. This was not how she wanted this evening to go. She had planned on coming over for moral support for her friend, not to sit here alone and make small talk with a horndog, a two-timing bastard, and Raj.

"Yeah, well, I'll just take my chances," she finally said after a moment. She bent down to pick up Sheldon's discarded plate of food and hurried away, walking down the hall until she came upon the second door on the left. She waited there for a few seconds, trying to settle the nerves in her stomach. Raising her fist, she knocked twice on Sheldon's closed door and then at the last second, she added one more knock. "Sheldon."

No answer.

_Knock – knock – knock –_ "Sheldon?"

She pressed her ear against the wooden frame and held her breath. One more time, to be funny, she knocked three more times before muttering his name again.

"Go away," came a stern voice from the other side of the door.

"It's me, Pen—"

"I know who you are. Go away."

"But I brought your food to you. And I'm leaving. I just wanted to say, 'Goodnight'." She bit her lower lip in anticipation.

"I appreciate the sentiment but I must ask you all the same to please, just go."

She leaned her shoulder into the door, casually placing her free hand on her hip while the other held up his half-finished pizza slice. "I understand. It's just, well…I hope you know that I won't forget how good you were to me when Leonard and I broke up. And I want you to know that I'm here for you, too." She pushed off of the door with her shoulder and pressed a flat hand against it. "So, to quote the great Sheldon Cooper: I'm right across the hall if you need me." And with that, she pivoted and made her way back towards the living room with her head down. She was almost around the corner when she heard the faint sound of her name being called. She treaded back and stopped outside of his door in time to hear him again.

"Penny?"

"Yes, Sheldon?"

There was a muffled sigh before he concluded, "Goodnight."

She smiled in spite of herself. "G'night, sweetie." She retreated down the hall, walked right past the guys, carefully tossing Sheldon's plate back on the coffee table, and left without a word to any of them.

* * *

It was a slippery slope, searching words like 'anonymous sex party' into an internet search engine, Sheldon realized. He was met with a row of images at the top of his mobile browser with naked women in suggestive poses, which he quickly scrolled past. The links provided were mostly to porn websites promising quality videos of orgies and women performing kinky sexual acts, but this was not what Sheldon wanted. He was laying on his back still, his arms bent at the elbows while he held his phone right above his face. Frowning, he erased his search and started fresh.

"Anonymous sex," he murmured as he clicked on his tiny screen then pressed search. Still, pictures of people engaging in coitus, but less porn websites and more links that provided the title of ads placed on Craigslist created by couples searching for other couples to engage in group sex with, and more of the like. He sighed, feeling deterred and slightly foolish. He scrolled down to the bottom of the mobile page by habit before he heard a loud noise at his door.

_Knock – knock – knock –_ "Sheldon."

He started and his phone fumbled out of his fingers, falling flat on his face. He winced and gasped, the sharp sting spreading over his nose and to his eyes, causing them to water.

"Damnit," he whispered before sitting up straight in bed. He stared at his door and looked down to the crack over the threshold, watching the shadow of two feet shuffling in the hallway.

_Knock – knock – knock –_ "Sheldon?"

He twitched, hoping she would do it one more time. And she didn't disappoint. When he asked her to go away, she was reluctant. He listened to her soft voice, tinged with an emotion he couldn't pinpoint. She sounded almost regretful, but not at all angry that he was dismissing her.

"So, to quote the great Sheldon Cooper: I'm right across the hall if you need me."

His face twitched again at the echo of his own promise that he relayed to her a few weeks ago when he saw her in despair on her couch after breaking up with Leonard. The image of her so fragile and distraught still haunted him to this day. He suddenly wondered if he seemed that way to Penny; a broken, feeble, sniveling mess of a man. He surely didn't feel that way. But as he watched her feet disappear from the view under his door and heard the padding of her flip-flops retreat, he felt searing warmth spread within his ribcage, and for some reason, the sound of her steps made him feel a little better. It was proof she was actually there. Before he could stop himself, he called out to her.

"Penny?" He wasn't sure she would hear him, but she came shuffling back and he felt a small smile break his portrait. "Goodnight."

"G'night, sweetie."

After he sent her away, he finally felt himself relax after getting so worked up at Howard during dinner. It was comforting knowing that at least he still had a friend in Penny when everyone else around him was so triumphantly letting him down. He pursed his lips and lowered his face, again feeling the slight shame build up inside of him as he remembered just how unknowingly helpful she had been a few days ago to him. It had been quite the masturbatory session; quick and efficient, no prolonged, unnecessary touching, just how he liked it. But the orgasm had been powerful, cathartic. Far more pleasing than he had experienced in quite some time. He supposed he would have to stop using her pictures now, especially if every time she came around him these wayward memories of ogling her body as he touched himself surfaced.

Soon, he was back to fretting about what he needed to do to squelch his newly ravenous urges. His eyes roamed around his bedroom until he looked down at his bed and saw his phone again, propped up against his knee with a dark screen. He picked it up and tapped it on, quickly deleting his search history and cookies, then closed the browser and set his phone down on his nightstand. He lied back, joining his palms behind his head as he stared at his ceiling, seeing nothing at all.

* * *

After Penny closed the door behind her, Leonard turned to his friends and shrugged. Raj sat all the way back on the couch, his arms crossed tightly across his chest and a thoughtful look on his face. Howard slid over to the last cushion, Sheldon's spot, and sat on the edge, ready to jump up and move if he happened to come back out to join them.

"Where did you even hear about these anonymous sex parties?" Leonard suddenly asked, air quoting the last three words with his hands.

"Kripke," Raj and Howard answered at the same time.

"Oh, then it's got to be a great idea if it came from Barry Kripke, Caltech's biggest sleaze bag."

Raj rolled his eyes at Leonard and explained. "Today he came by my office and like always, he overstays his welcome. He gets to talking about how he got lucky with some bimbo he met at the bar this past weekend and how she's really kinky."

"That's when I walked in and heard them talking," Howard said with a weird grimace. "I caught the tail end of their conversation so I asked what the hell they were talking about. Then Kripke said this girl told him about this place she frequents, and that's when Barry gave me this." He stood up quickly and yanked a small black card out of his pocket then handed it to Leonard, who took it and turned it over in his hands. It was glossy and smudged with fingerprints, but was completely black on both sides with one symbol on the front and an address below it.

"What the hell is this, a mask?" he asked aloud, squinting over his glasses at the scarlet-colored image of a mask with bird-like features, including an elongated nose, over the sea of black. He didn't recognize the Los Angeles address below the face.

"Anyway," Raj began again. "Barry said that the girl gave him this card after they slept together. And he said she scared the shit out of him, all the stuff she wanted him to do to her, so that there was no way he was going to call her again or go to this place." He pointed at the card that Leonard was still holding in his fingers. He watched as his bespectacled friend dropped the card on the coffee table abruptly, like it was infectious.

"Wait a second," he huffed. "So you're saying this girl really put a hurting on Barry and what, he wanted to pay it forward?"

"I guess," Howard said with a shrug. "I took the card and was going to give it to Sheldon because well, he seems like he really needs some 'freak' in his life."

"Have you ever met Sheldon before?" Leonard continued. "I'm surprised he even let Amy convince him into sleeping with her. And that took years for her to do. I doubt he'd be interested in having weird sex with strangers."

"Fine, it was a bad idea," Howard relented, holding both of his palms in the air. "But he has been a royal pain in the ass ever since Amy stopped giving him some. You even told Penny how crazy he's been lately."

"Your point?"

"I'm just saying, perhaps Sheldon is a little more human than you think. He's a guy. When our heart gets broken, we put them back together again the only way we know how…by banging chicks."

"Okay, now you're just being a pig," Raj muttered from behind Howard, staring at him with contempt.

"Not you, Raj," Howard said, rolling his eyes. "Your life is like a bad chick flick, we get it. You're looking for true love. But we can't all be as perfect as you…" he trailed off and his eyes quickly flitted to Leonard, giving him a meaningful glance.

"Oh, fuck off," Leonard replied. He avoided his friends' eyes and picked up the black card from the table, inspecting it again, back and front. "I'm gonna toss this out. If that chick was too weird for Kripke, then she and her friends at this place might kill Sheldon." With that, he crumpled up the small card in his hands and tossed it in the empty pizza box. "Leave him alone now, will you?"

"Are you kidding me? You don't want your living situation to improve slightly by making Sheldon, I don't know, less uptight?"

"No!"

"You all will see," Howard said. "Sheldon Cooper needs to get laid. And all of our problems will go away."

"Your problems run deeper than our friends' sex lives," Leonard mumbled as he gathered the trash from the coffee table and began to clean up so that they could play some video games.

* * *

Penny's iPod played the new Justin Timberlake album through tiny speakers propped up on her sink while she showered. She hit the high notes as water flowed out of the shower head and into her mouth. She sputtered and quieted, soaping her body while she stared at the white tile of the tub's wall and let her mind water. She wished her acting career would take off already so she could shoot on some tropical location somewhere with Justin instead of living across the hall from the varmint that made her feel stupid, used.

"Ugh, enough!" she demanded herself, slapping the tile with a flat, sudsy hand. She was through feeling sorry for herself. She realized that it might be time to get back on the dating wagon. Before Leonard, Penny went through men pretty frequently. Not very many got to slide into home, and other various sports metaphors for having sex, but she did have a lot of fun forgetting the break-up before the previous one, and before that one, and so on. Even though her and Leonard were never together for more than a consecutive year, both of the times they gave it a try, she couldn't help but feel more so attached to him than any other man.

She shut off her water and stared at her feet that were standing upon adhesive daises at the bottom of the tub. She grinned, knowing Sheldon would be proud of her. They weren't whimsical ducks, but they kept her from slipping. She stepped out and began to towel off, her thoughts going a mile a minute. Perhaps she felt more attached to Leonard because of all the doors he opened for her. He helped her mature a bit, learn to appreciate her worth (even though he shit all over her in the scheme of things), and most importantly, it was because of him that she had met some of the greatest friends she had ever made, like Bernadette, Amy, and of course, her very own Dr. Whack-a-doodle.

_Oh, Sheldon_, she thought. Wrapping the towel around her body, she hurried out to her room and dressed in her pajamas; standard tiny shorts and matching camisole. She happily left apartment 4A earlier knowing that at least Sheldon didn't hate her. Attending dinner to be there for him and let him know that she was still his friend was what she had went to accomplish, and accomplish she did. She wondered what he had been doing in his room all alone.

_"Penny, he's huge." _

Her mouth dropped open on its own accord as Amy's voice unexpectedly filled her brain, the memory of the surprise learning of Sheldon's girth sneaking up on her again. Even though it was a known fact to their group of friends that Sheldon and Amy had become intimate, it was still always hard for Penny to really believe it. He just seemed so…childish in so many ways. But then she remembered the shell-shocked look on Amy's face after they broke up and knew she could spot that face from anywhere.

That was the face of a woman who had given herself, her mind and her body, to a man and he just threw it all away. Penny definitely knew that face, all too well.

So maybe Sheldon had been holding out on everybody. Perhaps he was a bit more human than they were giving him credit for. She sat down on her bed and picked up the bottle of orange-scented lotion from her nightstand, squirting a generous amount into her palm. As she rubbed the cold liquid over her legs, Penny's damn imagination began to run amok once again.

"Huge," she chuckled aloud.

Before her thoughts could bleed freely into naughty territory, she was suddenly jolted by the memory of her Facebook notification from Sheldon. He had 'liked' a picture of her that she could barely remember being taken. It was last weekend, when Bernadette and Amy had plans with their significant others and Single Penny decided to text some of her old single friends that she had not seen in quite some time. She remembered arriving at her friend Candace's apartment with her new favorite blue bikini beneath her regular clothes, taking a row of tequila shots, a short cab ride to a loft with a pool on the roof and open bar, then very little else. She was happy to have woken up back in Candace's apartment and not in the arms of some stranger.

So Sheldon _liked _it, did he? Could it have been an accidental 'like'? She shook her head, answering her own question as she moved to lotion her other leg. Sheldon Cooper was a very deliberate man. There had to be some reasoning behind him acknowledging that picture of her. She smirked, once again trailing back to her initial thought; maybe he was more human than Penny had thought. She allowed herself to feel slightly flattered; it was nice being noticed by any man, especially one like Sheldon, who didn't seem to notice much of anything if it didn't come installed with Bluetooth, sound and run like a train, or referenced Star Trek. But that was as far as Penny would allow herself to think on the matter.

Leaning over to her nightstand, she picked up her cell phone and texted her friend Candace, asking her what her plans were for tomorrow night. Not willing to spend another moment moping around, Penny was on a mission.

_- Up for another adventure?_ her friend replied quickly.

_Adventure is my middle name_, Penny replied with an impish grin.

* * *

Her hips were more soft and plush than he had imagined a woman could feel. _Feather-like_, he concluded.

"Like that?" she asked in a breathless voice. Though so familiar, he could not figure out who it was whispering low in his ear.

"Yes," Sheldon hissed. He wished he could see her. The tremors rocking his body felt so good, so fulfilling in fact that he was afraid to open his eyes, afraid the sensations might stop. His fingers squeezed what he could only imagine were her hips grinding against his. He was fully clothed in his flannel pajamas and she was wearing something thin from what he could feel, but equally as stifling. The flimsy material she wore shifted between them and he wanted to rip it off with his teeth.

"You're holding me so tight," she whispered. Sheldon gripped her harder in response. "But it feels good."

"Feels good," he whimpered as he clenched his backside and lifted his hips off of the bed, higher and higher until his throbbing erection was met with the same soft resistance that his hands were grabbing.

"Harder!" she demanded.

"Harder," he whimpered again, following her instructions, slamming his pelvis upward into her softness. Very slowly, the tight spring in his lower abdomen began to uncoil, and he felt his pulse quicken and pound against every vital soft spot on his body, from his ears, to his neck, to his wrists, to his fingers. His breathing kicked up and soon the warmth was freely flooding every inch of his body. His toes curled.

"I'm going to come," he warned his partner.

"In my mouth?" Penny suggested.

"Penny!?" Sheldon shouted in confusion and ecstasy, all at once. The last syllable of her sweet name drug out as he flung the pillow in his hands to the side, his hips bucking into the air on their own as he came into his pajama pants. Sparks spotted his vision and his breathing was labored while he struggled to gather his bearings. Several noises assaulted him at once while the hot liquid squirted against the fabric of his underwear and he blinked profusely as he woke up. He craned his neck to the right and saw that he threw his pillow at his bookcase, causing all of the comic books to shift in their cases and some fell to the floor. The second noise he had heard were the springs in his mattress protesting beneath his violent shudders. The last noise was his own satisfied moans.

Then it all made sense. He had been sexually assaulting his pillow while his psyche toed the line between catatonic and lucid. And this wasn't the first time it had happened this week.

"Sheldon, what the hell?" Leonard's muffled voice demanded from the other side of his bedroom wall. "What are you doing in there?"

Though he was still half-asleep, Sheldon's superb sense of hearing kicked in as he heard his roommate's bare feet hit the wooden floor. "I'm fine!" he screeched, sitting up straight and covering his lower body though he was still alone. "Don't come over here. I just had a nightmare."

"Keep it down over there, for crying out loud," Leonard said moodily, and Sheldon listened again with bated breath, relaxing only after he heard his friend's mattress shift beneath his slight weight.

"What fresh hell is this?" Sheldon asked himself, his eyes wide as he sat up on his bed, hunched over with his long legs stretched out in front of him. He narrowed his eyes in the darkness of his room, only lit by the faint moonlight pouring through his open curtains, and noticed his toes were still curled. Only then did he realize his hands were pressing against his still semi-hard erection, soaked beneath his tarnished cotton pants.

It was a little while before he could relax, both mortified and slightly aroused by the remnants of his powerful orgasm that was still lingering in his loins. He laid flat on his back and as the minutes passed by, he remembered less and less of his dream. He was so exhausted and the muscles in his thighs were sore as though he had just got done running a marathon. So sore in fact that he couldn't even make himself get up and change out of his still damp underpants, and he faded away again, fussy and sure he had uttered a name, but could not think of what it was as sleep pulled him under.

* * *

"Perhaps if you substituted the variable with one of my suggested equations," Professor Statham said, pushing his manila folder towards Sheldon's back. "What you've written, well, it's very nonbalanced," he added as he watched him sketch the rest of his solution on the whiteboard in his office.

Sheldon capped his marker and his chin jutted out as he whirled around to face his colleague. "I think you mean it's _un_balanced."

"That's what I said," the man said defensively, squaring his shoulders beneath his khaki-colored blazer.

"You are close enough to me that I can feel the spittle from your mouth land on my neck, therefore you are close enough for me to have heard you clearly flub elementary English. Professor Statham, kindly show yourself out of my office." With that, Sheldon pivoted and faced his giant whiteboard again, his eyebrows perched high with irritation as he studied the problem before him. He heard the professor huff and turn to leave before he added, "Oh, and leave that folder with your equations."

"Really?"

Sheldon smirked at how hopeful the buffoon sounded. "Really. So I can have something to wipe my derrière with after my afternoon bowel movement." He picked up an eraser and incised the lower half of the equation by snuffing out the part that did not balance, but he used his broad shoulders to block this from Professor Statham's view in case he was still watching.

"Asshole," he heard the older man mutter before he finally walked out and left him alone.

Sheldon grunted sarcastically at the insult. His eyes burned and his body still ached. It had been a restless night and even more tedious morning listening to Leonard talk on the phone with Alex the entire drive to work. Sheldon barely let Leonard shift the car into park before he had pushed the door open and leapt out, beyond sickened by his repulsive behavior. They had a roommate quarterly review coming up, and he was none too pleased to take more time out of his already busy schedule to draft up another disciplinary report, but Leonard had it coming.

"Pissing off mow of the teaching staff, Coop-uh?"

Sheldon hissed internally. Of course his day would only get worse. He looked over his shoulder at Barry Kripke and pursed his lips at his abhorrent accent. "Kripke. What can I do for you?"

"Buth-day pawty, my foh-tieth. I'm inviting you and the geeks you hang out with. Tonight at ten."

"Not interested," Sheldon answered after taking a moment to understand what Barry was saying.

"Come on, Coop-uh. I huh-d yow a single man again, back on the pw-owl."

At this, Sheldon turned around quickly, meeting Barry's eyes evenly. "Where did you hear this?"

"Wolowitz and Koothwa-ppali."

"Of course," Sheldon mumbled unhappily before regrettably capping his marker again. "As I said, I must respectfully decline. Have a happy birthday, Kripke. Now get out. Some of us actually work on the clock."

"But it's at this bad ass baw that wecently opened. Lots of easy chicks and cheap dwinks."

Sheldon was shaking his head in disagreement, knowing this was not a genuine invite but more of the fact that Barry Kripke had no friends. He was about to say so when he felt the abrupt change of heart within him, like the tide rolling over the shore. He had been trying so hard to work and forget about the previous night, but regardless of what he did to distract himself, all he managed to do was create a mess of his work (he pointedly glanced at his whiteboard and the error that Professor Statham had caught) and become more agitated.

It was time he stop pretending he was the same man he used to be before his experimental summer and, for his own sanity, feed the beast.

He turned and gave a long look at Barry, taking in how blasé and collected he seemed to be, describing how "easy" the women at said bar would be, and yet, he still managed to produce halfway decent scientific work. Sheldon crossed his arms and, knowing he would regret this later, nodded slowly at the other physicist.

"Okay, Kripke. I'm in."

"Sweet. I'll e-mail you the deets. Way-tuh." He threw up two fingers in a sign of peace, which Sheldon furrowed his eyebrows at, and was gone, leaving the fitful man alone with his thoughts.

Sheldon would never admit to believing anything Howard Wolowitz said was correct, per say, but he had heard what sounded like the conclusion of his conversation with Leonard and Raj last night at dinner after he left the solitude of his room to use the restroom. He believed his crass hypothesis went along the tracks of "mending a broken heart" by "banging chicks". Sheldon knew that his heart wasn't broken, but something inside of him was. When he woke up this morning to stiffened, stained pajama pants and sore limbs, the fuzzy memory of his nocturnal emission pummeled him with shame. And he was none too pleased to recall who the focus of said dream was.

Maybe he would try releasing his sexual frustrations with someone he didn't know, someone he wouldn't ever see again, and this way, he could finally achieve what was begging to be released without the social repercussions. After all, Sheldon might have urges he had never entertained before, but he still needed to maintain order in his life.

Sighing, he walked around his desk and collapsed in his seat. Perhaps he really was crazy. But he had to try something. This turmoil, this _frustration_, was affecting his work, his friendships, his sleeping pattern. And he had no idea who to be more cross with, Amy Farrah Fowler…or Penny.

* * *

Penny was looking hot and she knew it. The tight black dress bared one shoulder and arm, while her other arm was encased in the lacy sleeve. It was a very short number, barely covering the small freckles on her upper thigh that were right below what was dangerously private territory, but she did a few poses in her full-length mirror and decided she was in no danger of inadvertently flashing the goods if she was careful. She finished off her makeup (_smokey eyes get the guys_) and ran a brush through her hair, admiring the blond siren image she had created. Her excitement for going out tonight with Candace had severely dwindled after a 10 hour shift at the Cheesecake Factory, but as she trudged up to the fourth floor of her apartment building and heard the stifled giggles of Alex and chuckles of Leonard coming from his living room just on the other side of the closed door, she booked it into the shower, determined to wake up and get the night started.

Like hell she was going to sit on her couch with more ice cream and Bailey's, gaining ten pounds in calories and losing five in tears.

She spritzed herself with perfume and gave one last twirl in the mirror before winking in approval at her reflection and shutting off the lights in her room. Grabbing her clutch and keys in one hand and closing her door behind her with the other, Penny started towards the stairs when she heard the door knob of apartment 4A jiggle and she winced, not ready to see Alex and Leonard walk out together. She turned quickly and took the first step down when she heard her name.

"Penny?"

She looked over her shoulder and to her relief, saw Sheldon step out of the door before shutting it behind him. "Sheldon!" she cried, her heart immediately slowing to a normal pace. "God, I'm so happy to see you. I thought you were Leonard and Alex."

"No," Sheldon muttered with a frown, adjusting the sleeves of his dress shirt. "They were mauling each other on the couch just now; I doubt they'll be going anywhere tonight." He looked up at Penny and he must have caught the slight look of pain on her face because he quickly shook his head as if dismissing the thought. "Sorry. Were you leaving?"

"Yeah…" Penny began, but then paused and took the opportunity to appreciate the sight in front of her. "Sheldon…you look…"

"Yes?" he prompted, not so much to fish for a compliment, Penny knew, but more to get her to complete a sentence. He once gave her a twenty minute lecture about how incorrigible it was that she ended her statements with questions and often substituted nouns with words such as "thingy" and "stuff" and "whatchamacallits". It irked him to no end. But she couldn't quite figure out how to describe the way he looked like right now without offending him. She wanted to say normal, or maybe even _hot_.

She went with, "You're dressed up."

"Yes," he said with a small smile and looked down at his black dress slacks and shiny black shoes, then smoothed out the crisp, white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbows, displaying his long, sturdy forearms. Penny gulped when she focused on the black skinny tie that completed his very hip yet sophisticated look. The ensemble trimmed his lofty figure in a flattering way, and she found herself staring at his hips where his shirt was neatly tucked in. "I am attending a birthday party tonight and am under the impression that the establishment where I'm going will not take too kindly to my superhero shirts and plaid pants." He frowned as though it was not for lack of arguing on his part.

Penny shook her head and felt a goofy grin appear on her face, unable to help herself from gawking at him. A sudden, cheeky thought crossed her mind before she could stop it. _Wish I could '_like' _this picture in front of me right now…_

"So," Sheldon continued after a moment of silence. He fidgeted under her impressed stare. "Where are you headed? You look rather put together, as well."

"Put together?" Penny finally snapped out of it and met his eyes, perching an eyebrow at him. She climbed back up the step to meet Sheldon and twirled around in what she hoped was a cute way. "This dress was two hundred dollars. Sure, it'll pay for itself in drinks over time, but after all that money I spent, you're going to tell me I look 'put together'?" She posed, jutting her hip out and braced her hand on it.

Sheldon's face twitched and for a moment she thought he looked angry. But as quickly as it came, it passed and he supplied her with a meek smile. "You look very nice, Penny. Ravishing." He coughed into his fist nervously and looked at the broken elevator over her shoulder, avoiding her eyes.

_That's what I'm talking about, _she thought evilly. "Thank you, sweetie. And the same goes for you. Meow." She mime clawed at him and he rolled his eyes, the faint blush on his nose and cheekbones fading.

"Thank you, I think. Now, if you'll excuse me. My cab is waiting outside." He nodded goodbye and started down the stairs without another word.

"Well, where are you going?" Penny asked eagerly, following him down the steps, moving a little more slowly than he since her legs weren't as long and her heels were high. "I can drop you off on my way to my friend's house."

"No," Sheldon said firmly, giving her a wild glare over his shoulder as he reached the bottom step before turning the corner and continuing down the next flight. "That won't be necessary, thank you," he added in a softer voice.

"Oh," Penny said, slightly startled. "Well, okay." They descended the rest of the stairs in silence until they reached the ground floor and Sheldon walked ahead, holding the glass door open for her as she pranced out.

"Well," she said as they stood on the curb where sure enough, a yellow cab was idling. "Have fun tonight, wherever you go. Don't do anything I would do." She winked at him and turned to head towards her car parked further down the street.

"Goodbye," Sheldon called and reached for the handle of the back door to the taxi. "Oh, and Penny?"

She stopped in her tracks and turned around expectantly. "Yes, Sheldon?"

His icy eyes pierced her intensely then he licked his bottom lip nervously. "Please, be safe tonight. Your dress, well, it makes you look positively irresistible. Which can be both a good and a bad thing."

Penny felt her chest cave a little bit under the sweet request. "Aww, Sheldon!" she gushed. She watched him roll his eyes again and she giggled. "I promise to be careful. And, thank you. I needed to hear that."

"Welcome," he mumbled before leaping into the cab, leaving her with her thoughts. She shook her head and turned around after the cab sped off, and she headed to her car, the vision of Sheldon's eyes keeping her company.

"When did they get so blue?" she asked the warm night air.

* * *

**A/N pt 2: Shit, it was difficult writing in the way of Barry's speech impediment. It took forever. Hope y'all could understand it, but if not, it's okay. PM me and I'll translate. We're in this together, lol.**


	3. Three

**A/N: Sorry for the delay, but I have quite literally been on my deathbed (I'm dramatic), suffering from flu symptoms. I didn't have enough strength to sit up and type until recently and even then I didn't want to deliver Nyquil-laced drivel. I am so honored by the feedback this story is receiving, therefore I didn't want to just update for the sake of it. You all deserve my best.**

**Enjoy.**

* * *

_Earlier that day._

"So did Sheldon say he was going?" Raj asked his friend nonchalantly, forking his salad with very little commitment.

Howard nodded enthusiastically, sipping from his water bottle. "Yep. Kripke came by my lab and let me know that Sheldon actually accepted his invite."

"What invite?" Leonard inquired after swallowing some of his fruit. He perched an eyebrow, staring down his friends.

"Kripke is having his birthday party tonight at a bar," Howard answered with a shrug but eyed Raj importantly. "He invited us all."

"I'm not going anywhere in public with that creep," Leonard said with a wince of disgust.

"Neither are we," Raj said, pointing to himself and Howard with his fork.

"And Sheldon said he was going to go?"

"That's what he said," Howard mumbled with another shrug. Struggling to maintain indifference, he snuck a meaningful glance at Raj, who just frowned in return.

Leonard missed the exchange and thoughtfully gazed down at his tray of food. The cafeteria at Caltech was buzzing with the conversation of staff and grad students alike as usual, but somehow it felt quieter, probably since Sheldon had refused to sit with them for lunch, opting instead to take the full hour in his own office. Leonard gazed at the empty chair in front of him before turning back to Howard.

"He won't go without us," he said, mostly to himself.

"We're not exactly his favorite people right now," Howard reasoned. "He wouldn't even come eat lunch with us today. I doubt he'll care whether or not we go out with him tonight."

"We can't just let him go by himself, though." Not even Leonard could pinpoint why he suddenly felt so protective of his zany friend. But there was something about Barry Kripke outright inviting Sheldon to a bar that just didn't sit right with him. "Neither of you are going?"

"Nope," Howard answered for himself and his suddenly quiet friend in front of him. He set down his water bottle and gave them both an exhausted look. "Why do you care? Sheldon's a grown man in his 30's. If he wants to go out with other people, why stop him?" When Leonard didn't say anything, he added, "It'll give you a little alone time with Alex at your place tonight, right?"

Leonard could hardly argue with that. His girlfriend lived in an off-campus student apartment, fully furnished not only with couches but with three other young women as well. Alone time with her over there was infrequent, and the thought of an evening alone with Alex on his own turf sans Sheldon (who made it a point to drift around them and toss evil glances in their direction every time she came over) for the entire night would be nice. He sighed and bit down on a grape.

"Whatever," he said as he chewed and gathered his tray. "I still don't think he'll go, but I guess we'll see. Talk to you guys later." With that, he left his two friends and headed back to his lab. When he was gone, Raj set his fork down and crossed his arms over his chest, giving Howard a dirty look.

"What?" Howard demanded, sagging under Raj's stare. "Geez."

"You know _what_," Raj accused. "I can't believe you're actually going through with it."

"Hey, we tried involving Leonard, but that was a bust. He'll thank us in the long run when Sheldon finally rejoins the human race and loosens up. He needs this."

"You don't know what Sheldon needs. He's not like you."

"What is your problem?" Howard asked defensively. "It's not like he's a virgin anymore. We're not having him defiled against his will. Kripke said he take Sheldon to the same club he met that chick at 'cause she's always there. If he sees her, he'll introduce her to Sheldon. It's up to him whether or not he does anything with her."

"It just doesn't feel right." Raj gathered his trash and plopped it on his tray. "Sheldon is still innocent in a lot of ways. What if he…" He trailed off, staring down dejectedly at the table.

"'What if he' what?"

"Kripke said that this girl was kind of into freaky things. What if Sheldon gets hurt?"

"Wow." Howard stared down his friend with a curious gaze. "Am I the only one who sees reason here? The guy isn't a child, he's just a little inexperienced. He needs to get laid!"

"Not everything is about sex, Howard." Raj picked up his tray and Howard quickly followed him with his own. They dumped their trash and started quietly down the hall, Raj shaking his head sadly and Howard shaking his own head as well, but out of sheer disbelief at how much estrogen could reside in one man.

* * *

"I always pre-game way too hard," Penny slurred from the backseat of the cab as it rolled to a stop at the curb. Her head spun as her friends laughed and one of them yanked gently on her arm, pulling her out of the car. A warm breeze ruffled the lace at the trim of her dress, and on instinct she yanked down on the hem, paranoid that she would flash someone regardless of how tight the fabric was around her thighs.

"Get it together, bitch. They won't let you in if you're already wasted!" Penny heard her friend Candace laugh. Then she felt her wrap a slender arm around Penny's waist, holding her upright.

"This is your fault," Penny accused, pursing her lips as her face fell into Candace's soft red hair. "You got me drunk." She turned and looked behind her at the other two girls with them. "This is all of your faults!" They cackled in response.

"You said you wanted to forget about your ex," Candace said lightly. "I don't know what that means in Nebraska, but here in L.A., that means we consume lots of alcohol."

They made their way up to the entrance of the club, bypassing the line of patrons waiting to get in. Ignoring the protests of the people behind them as Candace said hello to the doorman, someone she obviously knew, Penny squinted through heavy eyes at the neon sign. The building was two stories high and made of brick. When she got dizzy from looking up, she closed her eyes and tried to pull it together.

"Okay," she said, rolling her neck left and right, hearing the satisfying_ pop_. She peeled Candace's arm off of her as they walked closer to the bouncer outside checking I.D.'s. "I'm good. I just need to make a quick trip to the ladies' room when we get in, then drink some water."

"Bathroom is down the first hallway on the right," Candace informed her, pulling her I.D. out of her cleavage. "We'll go get a table somewhere near the dance floor. Will you be alright by yourself?"

"Yes, of course!" Penny huffed, waving her hand dismissively. "I feel like a million bucks."

"Okay, well make it quick. If this place sucks I know of an after party." Candace adjusted her blue dress and winked at her friends.

They were soon let in and Penny booked it to the bathroom, following Candace's directions. She braced herself on the marble sink before turning on the faucet and splashed some cool water on her cheeks. She took a few deep breaths, gulping in the cold air blasting from the AC in the pleasantly clean restroom. She looked around and saw the attending giving her a curious look to which she returned a shrug.

"Just a little too much to drink," she explained, then looked in the mirror at her reflection. The evening had started out fun enough, shooting liquor and snapping pictures with her girlfriends at Candace's apartment. But sometime after the fifth shot of Vodka, Penny's speech began to slur and her thoughts turned dark. It was true that she had told Candace that tonight she wanted to forget about Leonard. She relived the tale to her friends of how she heard him and Alex giggling on the couch from outside his apartment earlier that evening, and they were appropriately angry along with her. But what Penny had not counted on was the sinking feeling that accompanied her anger.

After the sixth shot, she peered around at her company, girls she knew but not that well. And in that moment she wished she was with someone she _did_ know. With dawning surprise, Penny had wished that instead of partying with these girls, that she was instead sitting around a coffee table in her comfy yoga pants and a sweat shirt, listening to a blue-eyed prodigy lecture her on the safety protocols in lieu of the impending zombie apocalypse and assure her that he would swiftly behead her if she turned, out of honor to her, of course.

Those eyes. They had been haunting her since she last saw them retreating into a cab and leaving her alone on the sidewalk in front of their apartment. Penny realized she must really be lonely if she had preferred sitting on a couch listening to Sheldon Cooper drone on about trivial things rather than drinking and dancing at the club.

But then as a lump formed in her throat and she took another look at her reflection, Penny realized that she wasn't the club type anymore. Being with Leonard changed her. And not because of the relationship, no, she was still as clueless about love as she always was, but her priorities and preferences had shifted beyond recognition. She pulled out her cell phone from her small clutch and thumbed through her address book until she saw Sheldon's contact information. She wanted to text him, call him, something. It felt like he might be her only friend left in the world.

Then a thought came to mind: where was he going tonight, all dressed up? Penny's stomach fluttered as she remembered how handsome he looked in his tie and dress slacks. Could he be going on a date? Is that why he so quickly dismissed her offer to drop him off at his destination? She slumped against the sink and slipped the phone back into her purse. It was highly unlikely that Sheldon "don't touch me without latex gloves" Cooper was on his way to meet a lady for a date. Regardless, he made it clear that he didn't want Penny to know where he was going. So she wouldn't bother him tonight.

_Your dress, well, it makes you look positively irresistible._

Instead, she would hold onto that.

A familiar song pulsed through the walls of the restroom and Penny tossed her hair over her shoulder, grinning at her reflection. Tonight she would try to have a good time, and instead of drinking until she blacked out and forgot about her relationship woes, she would keep her promise to Sheldon and would be careful.

"Have a good one," Penny told the attendant before exiting the bathroom and went to search for her friends.

* * *

Sheldon instantly recognized the crooning of the male singing on the overhead speakers. He watched a trio of women raise their hands with their drinks in them, the cherry-colored liquid sloshing over the rims as they hurried to the dance floor. One of the women had a wild, red mane of hair and a slinky blue dress on as she wriggled to the Justin Timberlake tune. She was not Penny, but she sure enjoyed the music with a familiar enthusiasm that made Sheldon think of his neighbor. She continued to writhe against her female friends, swaying her hips to the beat, and ran a hand through her hair. She looked up suddenly and met Sheldon's eyes. Then she grinned and spun around, giving him a generous view of her ample backside.

He remained unaffected, staring at the woman but not really seeing her. Hovering on the edge of the crowd with Barry's party, he stood with his shoulders slightly hunched, his drink in one hand and the other hand jammed into his pocket. He found himself wondering how Penny would dance to this song. Would she wiggle suggestively and spin around like that? Make eye contact with him and lick her lips like this red-haired stranger? Sheldon smirked, not to encourage the woman on the dance floor, but because he remembered the last time he walked in on Penny listening to this very song.

Eleven days ago, he was working on his laptop when the distant caterwauling of a male singing to a deep bass interrupted his train of thought. He groaned and jumped up from his chair, ripping open his front door before narrowing his eyes at apartment 4B. Then he stalked out of his apartment and crossed the hall in four long strides. After completing his round of knocking on her door, Penny answered, her face bright red and wearing black sweat pants and a crumpled old t-shirt.

"Will you _please _turn down that infernal music?" he demanded, towering over her with his eyebrows high and lips pursed.

"What, you don't like Justin Timberlake?" she asked with a pout, then shimmied her arms until he scoffed and turned around to head back to his home. "Aw, come on, Sheldon! I'll turn it down if you dance with me!" She grabbed at his wrist and caught it, holding him firmly. He whirled around to meet her eyes and gave her a derisive snort.

"Not likely."

"Maybe you can just watch me dance, huh? Then jump in if the mood strikes you." She winked at him and waggled her eyebrows playfully, knowing she was being ridiculous. She let him go and walked over to the front of her couch then threw her hands in the air and swiveled her hips, but Sheldon never continued to watch her.

"I'm working, Penny," he called over his shoulder as he walked away. "Turn it _down_."

She ended up turning the volume down and he went back to work. But now the tedious song had returned to taunt him here in this club and he suddenly wished that he had stayed to watch Penny dance that day…

"Making eyes at that hot chick, huh, Coop-uh?"

Sheldon blanched as the moist, alcohol-scented breath sprayed against his neck and interrupted his thoughts. "Please refrain from speaking into my skin," he mumbled.

"Sowwy," the birthday boy rolled his eyes. "I think she wikes you. She's wubbin' on her tits, wook!"

Sheldon rolled his eyes and inadvertently followed Barry's arm as he pointed at the red-haired woman on the dance floor, who indeed was touching herself and staring right back at them. His jaw dropped and he quickly turned away, glancing down at his half-empty glass of Diet Coke.

"Whaddya doing, man?" Barry asked with wide eyes. He elbowed Sheldon in the ribs and made his drink spill. "Go int-wo-duce yow-self." He gazed at the taller physicist and then pointedly looked at the drink in his hand. "Need liquid cou-wage?"

"What?" Sheldon asked. He glared at Barry. "I'm not going over there. And this is Diet Coke."

"You've gotta be fweakin' kidding me. Why awen't you dwinking?"

He thrust his Diet Coke into Barry's face and tilted his head towards it. "I am drinking, Kripke. See the straw?"

"A soda doesn't count. Be a man; dwink some whiskey with me!" Barry turned around to face the bar and circled his pointer finger in the air, signaling another round of drinks to the female bartender who nodded and yanked a bottle off the rack behind her.

"I did not come here to partake in the consumption of alcohol tonight," Sheldon muttered a protest.

Truth be told, Sheldon was not sure what he came here for tonight anymore. After running into Penny on the stairs back home and watching her walk away from him as the black fabric of her dress barely covered her bottom, all Sheldon had done this evening was think of her.

_And this is precisely why you came tonight_, he reminded himself. _To find someone else to copulate with so that these confounded thoughts and nightly visits from Penny in dream-form will cease._

But even as he thought this, he felt slightly out of scope, helpless and agitated. Was this truly what he wanted?

"Bottoms up!" Barry had turned back around from the bar with a shot glass filled with brown liquid in each hand. He held one up to Sheldon's nose who took a whiff of it by instinct and the vivid scent of whiskey invaded his nostrils.

"No, no thank you," Sheldon protested again, reeling back. He grabbed his green straw and twirled it between the ice cubes in his own glass before taking a small sip. "That won't be necessary."

"Whatev-uh," Barry sighed and shot back one of the small glasses, grimacing at the taste. "Shit, that's stwong."

Sheldon shook his head and wondered why self-proclaimed 'real' men did that to themselves; consumed wretched tasting liquor then complained about the high concentration of ethanol. He turned around and looked miserably around the giant, packed club. The flashing lights pulsed quickly as the song continued to boom through the speakers and Sheldon winced as a laser from the DJ booth temporarily blinded him, causing him to miss Barry pouring the entire shot of whiskey from his other hand into his glass of Diet Coke.

When the entire shot was emptied into Sheldon's glass without him any the wiser, Barry smirked. "This place has two floors, Coop-uh. Want to wook around?"

"I suppose," Sheldon said distractedly, his patience running thin. Barry turned around to talk to someone from his party and Sheldon found himself viewing the dance floor again. He had lost sight of the provocative woman from earlier and he sighed internally, severely regretting his decision to come out here in the first place. He had been here for two hours and was none the closer to meeting any women to have meaningless sex with. Then again, any woman that tried striking up a conversation with him all night had been sorely dismissed with a blank stare from him. He absently took a long sip from his green straw and as the large amount of liquid splashed against the back of his throat, he winced.

"My drink is watered down," he told Barry, placing the now empty glass on the bar.

"Wet me get you anoth-uh one, then," Barry offered with a grin. "Then we'll walk awound."

"Very well," Sheldon said, smacking his lips.

"While I get your dwink, say hi to my fwiend Katie."

"What?" Sheldon turned around and looked for Barry but instead was met with the sight of a short, petite woman with brown hair cropped closely to her neck and long bangs that swooped over her forehead, nearly covering her eyes. He peered down at her curiously.

"Hi, I'm Katie," she introduced herself, supplying Sheldon with a wide, gleaming grin. Her perfect teeth were so white that he felt slightly dazzled. Her smile was unabashed, almost feral. It was slightly off-putting but he politely nodded and reciprocated the greeting.

"Sheldon Cooper."

"Nice to meet you," Katie said, still smiling. "Barry tells me you're a physicist, like him."

"I wouldn't say _like _him," Sheldon protested with a frown. "He would be so lucky to share my caliber." He was momentarily stunned when Katie let out a melodious laugh, loud enough to be heard over the speakers of the music, yet still soft and feminine. He couldn't help but smile back.

"Sheldon, do you want to get out of here? It's kind of loud."

His first instinct was to turn her down. He allowed himself to look down and take in her outfit; revealing cleavage and tight skirt, short enough to garner attention but, he realized with irritation, he wasn't impressed. He couldn't help but think that all of his attention had been stolen away by a certain Nebraskan earlier that evening and he inwardly scowled.

Just as he was about to politely decline her offer, he cast his eyes out again, pointedly glancing at the same spot on the dance floor where the redhead had been earlier and for a moment, he thought his mind was playing tricks on him. His breath caught in his throat as another woman joined the trio, her hands in the air as she swayed to the beat of the music. He caught a glimpse of her closed eyes and the slight grin on her face as she moved in perfect sync with the song. Her blonde waves twirled along with her, suddenly covering her expression so that he could no longer see any of her facial features, but he would know that dress anywhere. He could practically feel the black lace on his fingers as he studied the fabric hugging her svelte figure.

* * *

"Took you long enough!" Candace shouted at Penny as she joined them on the dance floor.

"Sorry," Penny shouted back. "They play really good music here!"

"Yeah, it's alright, but the guys here aren't very…"

Penny struggled to understand her friend but the music was too loud so she shrugged and began swaying to the beat. She figured she would dance a bit to fight off the melancholy that was threatening to overcome her after her revelation in the bathroom, then after a few minutes politely back out of the evening and fetch a cab to take her back to Candace's place so she could grab her car, drive home, and call it a night. As she spun on her heels and danced it out, she greedily thought about the carton of chocolate ice cream waiting for her in her freezer. She thought that she might even stay up late enough to listen for Sheldon, then corner him and ask him where he had gone tonight.

She wasn't sure why it was so important to her, but she couldn't get the image of him all dressed up out of her head. She smirked, her eyes still closed as her hair whipped around her face, truly looking forward to going home and seeing her friend.

"…except that tall glass of water staring at us again."

"Huh?" Penny asked, her eyes fluttering open. She watched Candace wink at someone in the distance towards the bar, and she followed her gaze as her friend spoke again.

"He's been staring at me all night. Maybe I should go say hi?"

Penny narrowed her eyes to scan the group of people at the bar but saw no one in particular that Candace was talking about. "Who?"

"Shit, he just bolted," Candace pouted. "Oh, well. Hey, this place is a dog pound tonight. Want to hit the after party? There will be plenty more hot guys."

The two girls with them nodded but Penny decided now would be a good time to bow out. "I've gotta work early tomorrow, so I'm going to head home." Her friends tried in vain to ask her to stay, but Penny could not get out of there fast enough. With promises that she would text them when she made it home safely, Penny hurried off the dance floor. She was looking down at her clutch, pulling her phone out when she suddenly came into contact with another body. "Shit, I'm sorry!"

"Whoa, whare's the fi-yuh?"

Penny's head snapped up and she came face-to-face with a man whose voice she would know anywhere, even if she couldn't quite remember his name at the moment. "Sorry," she mumbled and tried to move out of the way.

"Hey, it's you!" he exclaimed, blocking her way. "Woxanne."

"Yeah," she said snidely. "Roxanne. Whatever. Excuse me." She tried to get around him but he stepped in her way again.

"It's me, Bawwy Kwipke. I work with your woser fwiends."

"Yes, I remember. Well, have a good night, Barry. I'm just on my way out, so…"

"Were you wooking for Coop-uh?"

At these words, Penny froze and turned around to face the goofy man again. "I'm sorry, did you mean Sheldon?" He nodded and she continued. "Was he here?"

"Was," Barry answered, looking around and shouting over the music. "But now he's gone."

"Did you see which way he went?" Penny asked frantically, placing her hand on his arm. She removed it quickly when she saw him glance down at her touch and smile.

"Nah, but I intwoduced him to a hot chick a second ago, so I guess he left with her. Poor bastard."

Penny felt her face twist up partly in confusion, mostly in disbelief. "Oh," she said softly, surprised at the hollow pang that abruptly appeared in her chest. She dismissed it and gave Barry one last look. "Well, alright. See ya, Kripke." Then she pivoted and walked past the groups of people loitering on the edge of the dance floor, her head down as she made haste.

Had Penny and Barry been talking about the same Sheldon? Since when did he leave clubs with, as the annoying man had put it, 'hot chicks'?

_And why the hell would it bother me so much? _

She finally made it outside and took a deep breath, inhaling the warm air as she yanked her phone out of her clutch to call for a cab. But to her relief, there were already a few taxis lined up at the curb. She walked quickly to the nearest one and hopped in, giving the driver directions to Candace's apartment and sunk back into her seat, watching the street lights fly past her as the car picked up speed.

* * *

Sheldon was in hell. He internally groaned as he watched Penny's hips swivel and he bit his lower lip as she spun, allowing him to see all of her at every angle. This was precisely what he was trying to avoid, more reasons to desire her, think of her later when he was alone. He felt a familiar tingle run up his inner thighs and he winced, reluctantly tearing his eyes away from the dance floor. He suddenly remembered Katie next to him and he stared at her like she might be his last hope.

"Sure, let's go," Sheldon heard himself say. "Let's go," he repeated when she didn't move.

"Oh, okay," Katie said happily and slipped her hand in Sheldon's. He longed to yank it out of her grasp, but the urgency to leave overpowered everything else. He allowed her to lead him through the crowd as the strangers they walked past brushed against him. He didn't realize he was holding his breath until Katie pulled him through a metal door with a bright red 'EXIT' sign nailed above it. Suddenly, they were outside, and Sheldon felt all the air leave his lungs. He shook his head and closed his eyes tightly, fighting the urge to leave Katie alone outside while he ran back in and grabbed Penny. The sudden image of him pressing his body to hers as he let his fingers trace her thigh until they disappeared under her dress right there on the dance floor plagued his thoughts and he opened his eyes, forcing himself to focus on what was in front of him.

"Where are we?" he asked, slightly out of breath. He eagerly let go of Katie's hand and continued to follow her as she pranced ahead of him, leading him down an alley behind the bar. A new feeling of fear overcame him, this time having nothing to do with Penny and everything to do with the fact that he was walking down a dark alley with a stranger. "Katie?"

"Follow me," she urged, calling to him over her shoulder.

Sheldon was about to protest when Katie stopped and spun around, facing him with a devilish smile. He opened his mouth to ask her what she was smiling at when she pounced on him, backing him into the wall. They were wedged between a dumpster and several cardboard crates piled on top of each other, and Sheldon let out squeak of surprise as the sharp pain of his back scraping against the dirty brick crept up on him. Paired with this sensation was the sudden pressure of Katie's lips on his neck.

"Katie!" he shouted in surprise as the tingling that had crept up his thigh earlier at the sight of Penny emerged again, but this time it had crawled all the way up the right side of his body, intensifying at the spot on his skin that Katie was assaulting with her tongue. He shut his eyes and mustered the strength to lift his hands and place them on Katie's slender shoulders, pushing her away from him and holding her at arm's length. "Wait, what are you doing?"

"Barry told me this is what you were looking for tonight," she rasped, throwing her bangs out of her eyes with a flick of her head. She stared at him like she was hungry and he weakened at the knees.

"I don't understand," Sheldon whispered, his hold on her shoulders still strong. A wave of humiliation threatened to pull him under, but he refused to let it, maintaining eye contact. He didn't know what gave Kripke this idea, but Sheldon had a solid hunch that Wolowitz was behind this.

"No strings attached," Katie continued, pulling herself out of his grasp. Sheldon's eyes widened as she yanked at her shirt, pulling it off her body in one swift movement, revealing her perky breasts. He immediately looked down and was about to push past her to walk away until she spoke again. "My name isn't even really Katie."

Realization came crashing down on him like a waterfall, drenching him from head to toe. He finally looked up and avoided her naked torso, meeting her eyes instead. "It's not?"

She shook her head from side to side, studying him with a primal glare, like she wanted to devour him.

"So…" he continued, letting his gaze lower until he had a substantial view of her hardened nipples. "I can call you whatever I want?"

She nodded this time, her smile widening as she realized he was coming around. "I can even wear this, if it'll help." She looked over her both of her shoulders to make sure they were still alone before she pulled up her skirt slightly, showing Sheldon a black garter belt with something tucked securely against her thigh. His eyes widened as she showed him the item, a black velvet eye mask with purple and black feathers. Slowly, Katie secured it over her face, and Sheldon instantly felt himself harden, his shaft rubbing against his upper thigh. The sheer anticipation made him shiver as everything he had been looking for materialized right before him.

Taking a deep breath, Sheldon raised one of his arms until it was level with her breasts. Slowly, he let his fingers softly run over the hardened nub at the center. As if a jolt of electricity sparked at the contact, he ripped his hand away. He swallowed hard and realized this was it; either give into his urges right here and now, or go home and let them consume him over and over until he went mad. He nodded silently, and the woman in front of him took her cue. She lowered herself, bending at the knees and placed both of her hands on Sheldon's thighs. She looked up at him, but he saw nothing but the mask.

Anonymity.

"You can call me whatever you want," she reminded him as she unzipped his slacks and cupped him softly through his briefs. He shivered as her cold fingers found their way between his legs, rubbing him up and down. Then, he felt her hands move up to his waist and her fingers hooked the waistband of his underwear, yanking them down until his erection sprung out blithely.

Sheldon nodded at her before looking up at the smog-filled sky. He knew it was sick and twisted, and he wanted more than anything to just keep his mouth shut and wait for it to be over, but as the woman's slick tongue lapped at his tip before she took all of him into her mouth, he sighed the only name that came to mind.

"Penny…"

* * *

She was flipping through the channels on her tiny television in the living room, when the jingle of keys caught her attention. Her neck craned to the left and she watched her door as though she could see through it. She dropped her remote and jumped up from her couch, padding over to her door and pressed an eye to the peephole. Sheldon was home. Before she could stop herself or even remember that she was wearing skimpy pajamas, Penny ripped open her door and waited until Sheldon spun around and saw her. She studied him with narrowed eyes, taking in his disheveled hair and loosened tie. She huffed when she saw his shirt was haphazardly tucked in, the tail of it hanging out of his pants.

"Well, well, well," she said, clicking her tongue in mock disapproval. "Someone's getting home late."

"Hello, Penny," Sheldon said in reply, his voice slightly hoarse and his eyes heavy with sleep. She smirked slightly as his eyes traveled down her body before ripping them away and his face flushed. She hadn't meant to let him see her like this, but she didn't want to miss having a conversation with him. She was about to say more when he uttered a quick, "Have a good evening," and spun around, rushing to stick his key in the lock and turned it.

"Wait!" she protested. She watched as he removed his hand from his keys and looked up at the ceiling as though waiting for some sort of divine intervention. "Did you have a nice time tonight?"

"I did." He was still staring up, revealing nothing to Penny. She couldn't help it; her curiosity was going to kill the cat.

"A little birdy told me you were out having a good time with a _girl_ tonight," she tried, half-lying. "Is that true? Were you being a bad boy, Sheldon Cooper?" She tried keeping her voice light and playful, but it broke a little at the end of her question as he turned to face her again, but this time his eyes were hard and urgent. It gave her pause and she pressed her body closer to her door, physically recoiling from his sudden licentious glare.

He seemed satisfied by her reaction and he smirked knowingly. "That's for me to know, and you to find out."

This time, Penny had a very different reaction to his gruff voice. She felt the temperature rise and her body quivered a little as Sheldon gave her one last look, letting his eyes linger on her chest before giving her a tight nod and finally retreating into his apartment, shutting the door behind him. It was a few seconds before she finally stepped back into her own apartment, then locked the deadbolt and put on the chain.

* * *

Sheldon stood in the shower, letting the hot water cascade over his body as he stared down at his semi-erection. He studied it, truly disgruntled at the sight of it. How could he be aroused _again_?

After he had relieved himself all over "Penny" in the alley behind the club, he had felt light, slightly giddy and marveled at the satisfaction of fellatio. But when his breathing returned to normal and he zipped up his pants, she removed her mask and she was just Katie again.

She thanked him for his time and slipped him a black, glossy card with a picture of a mask on it, not unlike the one she had worn, and an address on the front. She told Sheldon to visit this address any time he wanted to see her again, and then she was gone, leaving him to gather his bearings before he walked towards the street and hailed a taxi.

The whole ride home he had felt repentant, disgusted with his behavior. How could he have allowed himself to lose control? Sure, the act itself was unmatched by anything he had ever experienced (Amy had taken a crack at it months ago, but after a few non-committal licks along his length, she expressed her inability to perform), but after it was all said and done, the reality of his actions pummeled him ruthlessly.

And it wasn't the sexual act in an alley that was bothering him, as much as the fact that he so vividly pictured one pair of lips wrapping themselves around his cock as he exploded, and they belonged to the woman who had confronted him in the hallway when he finally came home. He couldn't look her in the eye in fear that she would see his transgression on his face. But when she mentioned that she knew he was with a woman, Sheldon couldn't help but detect a flicker of emotion tremor through her voice. What was it? Envy? Oh, he was never good at deciphering emotions. Whatever it was, it woke something inside of him, and suddenly his tryst in the alley with Katie was for naught. He felt himself rise again at the sight of Penny in her silky gray shorts and matching tank top that barely covered her bosom. He had stared at breasts, imagining taking one of her nipples into his mouth and he swiftly turned away, unable to get away from her fast enough.

Sheldon sighed and closed his eyes, raising his face so that the water from the spout could wash over him completely. He silently willed his mind to shut off so that he could finally get a good night's rest.

After he was out of the shower and dressed in his Friday night pajamas even though it was technically now early Saturday morning, he crawled into his covers and let out an exhausted yawn. He thought of his activities that night and remembered the exact moment of his release, when he had convinced himself that he was receiving a sexual favor from _Penny_ and not a stranger. And at that moment, he remembered that he was truly at ease, far more so than he had been in months.

Before he allowed himself to mull over what this could mean, he fell into a fitful sleep.

* * *

**A/N pt. 2: I know. I can hear your cries of protest and impatient demands of Shenny sexy times, and I want you to know that I've had a certain direction in mind for this story way before these chapters were written. We still have a long way to go, so have faith in me. Never stop believing in the Shenny. ;]**

**Oh, and if anyone is interested in what Justin Timberlake song I had in mind when Sheldon saw Penny dancing in the club, it's called **_**Dress On**_**. **


	4. Four

**A/N: Sorry for another author's note, but I just have to say it again—thank you all SO much for your feedback. It truly pushes me to deliver. I am so glad you're game to welcome a darker Sheldon and the slow burn into the Shenny. But I promise that I won't make you wait forever ;]**

* * *

When Sheldon woke in the morning, his heart was already thumping quickly in his chest. His dream had startled him awake and because of it, he was so erect that it was painful. He waited for it to subside, blinking the troubling images into oblivion. After many minutes, he finally regained control of his faculties and felt his flesh lower, coming to rest heavily against his leg. The morning sun's rays furled between his blinds and casted patterns of light on his blue flannel pajamas. He turned his body away from the brightness and faced the dark corner of his room, the wall he shared with Leonard. Curled up on his side, he drew up his strong thighs and brought them into his abdomen then tucked his hands in between them. His breaths were coming in shallow and he shut his eyes tight, willing his pulse to slow down.

His brilliant mind, once exclusively utilized for unlocking the secrets of the universe by means of science, was galloping away from him. He grasped at it, chased it, tried to tame his thoughts, but the more he reached inside, the more vivid last night's excursion appeared on the lids of his closed eyes. He couldn't be sure if what he did last night had even been legal. Well, he was certain that he had definitely broken one law; engaging in sexual acts in public. But he hadn't done it in exchange for payment. And it was definitely consensual.

His memory proceeded to revel in the warm recollection of coming in Katie's mouth. While he innately thrust deeper between her lips, her small hands were sure and strong, pushing his hips firmly against the brick wall, suppressing him as she finished him off. He had watched his release coat her mouth, felt her tongue roll and push against his member and heard as she swallowed his deposit. He shivered involuntarily, a tingle caressing his loins.

The erotic encounter would never leave him for as long as he lived; such is the burden of possessing an eidetic memory. Coupled with these foreign sensations of gratification that he had never felt with Amy, Sheldon couldn't shake the hollow aching inside of him.

He thought of the dream he had just woken up from. While submerged in his subconscious, he had been sure initially that the dream was just a replay of the events of last night until he looked down at his partner as he was being serviced. The mask that had been there disappeared, replaced by wide green eyes shining wickedly with desire. Blonde wisps of her hair fell across her forehead and Sheldon pulled out of her mouth, horrified. She slowly rose from the position on her knees, wearing the black dress from last night, and grinned at him.

"Sheldon," Penny whispered. "I'm right across the hall if you need me."

And then he had woken up. He gave a shudder and felt nauseated. He remembered saying this very promise to Penny when he had seen her so withered and devastated the night her and Leonard broke up, and she had repeated the very same sentiment outside of his bedroom door a few days ago. Hearing her say it as she stood right outside his door had left him feeling uncharacteristically warmed. But in his dream, to actually watch the words pour from her lips that were still plump from sucking him off, Sheldon hated it. It had double meaning, he was sure; it was as if Dream Penny were taunting him, telling him that just outside his apartment door, she was there, ten feet away, ready for him.

Sheldon was ashamed enough at having used her pictures for his self-abuse but the fact that now that she was up front and center in his dreams was unacceptable. He was determined not to allow his mind the opportunity to wander down that avenue of possibility. Penny was his friend and he didn't need social convention to dictate that the sudden erotic urges that had befallen him as of late were not activities that friends should engage in with other friends.

Last night had only been a taste of what he wanted. What he _needed._ Could he participate in another romp with someone like Katie every time the urge was strong? She had made it very clear that he could. Sheldon realized that perhaps the only way to extract Penny from his mind once and for all was to satiate in his desires with someone else.

He threw himself onto his back and felt a sudden pressure on his lungs as an errant thought zoomed from one quadrant of his brain to the next.

_Not that someone like Penny would ever entertain the idea of being intimate with someone like me. _

Sheldon lied in bed for awhile longer, searching for someone to blame all of this on.

* * *

It was closer to noon than she would have liked when Penny finally woke up. She was an advocate for sleeping in, but she had some important errands to run before her shift at the Cheesecake Factory started at 3PM so she had set her alarm for nine o'clock. She stretched her aching limbs, slowly kicking her legs out in front of her and twisted away from her sheets that were matted against her moist skin.

"Damn it all," she groaned as she gradually became aware of what was going on with her body. She gasped and then sneezed, wincing at the pounding in her head. She gingerly turned her neck and saw that her alarm clock was no longer on her night stand. If Penny knew herself, she probably ripped the damn thing and its plug out of the wall when it went off this morning and flung it across her carpet. She peered over the side of her bed and looked at the floor, her suspicions confirmed.

She quickly took inventory of her symptoms: sore throat, stuffy nose, pounding headache, and feverish. She was officially in hell.

As soon as she could drag herself out of bed, she was standing under the cold stream of water in her shower, her core temperature immediately dropping to a more comfortable degree. Feeling slightly better but still achy, Penny racked her brain as she tried to remember where she could have picked up a cold. She hadn't been around anyone lately that showed symptoms of such.

_Well, Sheldon says some people are carriers, not particularly symptomatic_, she thought.

She froze in the middle of soaping her body when the thought of Sheldon unexpectedly came to her. Very quickly thereafter, the memory of his smug grin in the hallway after he returned at nearly 2AM last night followed.

_That's for me to know, and you to find out._

It sounded more like a threat than a promise, she realized. It chilled her but quite frankly, it also heightened her senses. In that one uttered sentence alone, she saw a shade of Sheldon she had never before noticed. Before she could pin a name to what it was, it had disappeared just as quickly as he slipped into his apartment and left her there to suffer the aftershock of the confrontation.

Barry Kripke had told her that Sheldon left the club with a woman. Who was this man and what had he done with her sweet little Moonpie? She frowned, continuing to drag the bar of soap across her skin that was now clammy beneath the cold water. Between this and the shocking '_like_' of her Facebook photo, Penny wondered if maybe this alarming behavior was just the tip of what could be an iceberg of problems that Sheldon was going through. Deep down, she had been very flattered by his attention to her picture, and even deeper than that, Penny could even to admit to herself that hearing Sheldon speak to her so boldly last night kind of sparked something akin to arousal from within her.

But was this _really _Sheldon? Or was this a cry for help?

She chastised herself for thinking of him like a helpless child. He was a grown man and it was time she start treating him like one. Grown men meet strange women in bars and left with them, it happened all the time. Still, a nagging feeling deep in the pit of her stomach told her that while all other men did that, _her _Sheldon didn't. Penny suddenly wondered if this feeling was truly concern like she was trying to convince herself, or maybe it was slight jealousy. She dismissed this quickly, chocking it up to her lightheaded, feverish state.

After she changed into some comfy clothes and she blow-dried her hair straight, she had begun to feel slightly better, but her nose was still runny and her head was pounding. It could be the remnants of a tiny hangover since she had drunk so much last night, but she was certain that she had sobered up long before she had finally fallen asleep. She began to scour her medicine cabinet in her bathroom for anything that could help but saw that she was cleaned out. Penny realized the one who used to supply her apartment with the good meds was Leonard and she scowled.

She was standing in the middle of her kitchen growling as she realized that she was also out of herbal tea. With a quick glance at the microwave clock, she saw that it was already almost 1PM and she needed some sort of pick-me-up before she could stand to work her shift at the restaurant. She knew without a shadow of doubt that what she needed would be in the apartment next door.

"That place is like a pharmacy," she mumbled aloud. Since breaking up with Leonard, she couldn't even begin to know what his weekend schedule was like anymore, and she couldn't care less. But she knew that Sheldon would be there. He could help her, she realized and she smiled despite herself. After thinking about him nearly all morning since she woke up, Penny realized that she had begun to sort of miss him.

A visit with Sheldon sounded nice right now.

* * *

His spot was waiting for him after his long shower. Freshly dressed and recently fed, Sheldon allowed a small smile to soften his face as he eased into the cushion. Letting out a deep sigh of satisfaction, he was relieved to at least have this one constant that he could always come back to when other elements in his life spiraled out of control.

_His _spot. They had been through a lot over the years, but it was always there for him when he needed it. He was grateful that his mind was finally taking a break from pummeling him with lewd thoughts and for a moment, he thought that maybe he could even enjoy the rest of his day without interruption. With Leonard and Alex out of the apartment for the foreseeable future and a free schedule until later this evening when his laundry would need to be sorted and pre-soaked, the day was already looking up after his fitful morning. Sheldon physically relaxed, allowing the coolness of the leather to welcome him into the embrace of his spot.

"Yoohoo!"

His smile still plastered on his face, Sheldon's eyes narrowed and they flitted to the door, watching as the prospects of a peaceful afternoon came to a crashing down on his head. A blonde sheet of hair followed by the curious face of his neighbor poked through the door as she looked around before settling her gaze on him. Then his smile finally began to fade.

"Hey, Sheldon," Penny grinned. She invited herself in and stood in the open doorway, watching him with eager eyes. "Whatcha doin'?"

His eyes betrayed his will, sweeping up her toned legs until they met the tiny shorts that rested on her hips. He was relieved to see that she was at least merciful enough to wear a long-sleeved thermal shirt that covered her usually exposed bosom. He felt his left hand clench the arm rest of the couch and he cleared his throat.

"I suppose it's a little late in the game to expect for you to follow proper knocking etiquette," he muttered, holding eye contact with her.

"Oh, well, the door was unlocked," she reasoned. "Why knock on an open door? If it was locked, then I definitely would have knocked."

"How thoughtful," he deadpanned. "What can I do for you, Penny?" He tried to remain aloof as his insides churned.

"Well, I'm not feeling so well, and I'm out of medicine. And tea." Sheldon opened his mouth to speak but she cut him off, reaching into the pocket of her shorts. "Don't worry, it's just allergies, nothing contagious. But I came prepared. See?" She yanked her hand out of her pocket and held up a black, silky handkerchief. Sheldon's eyes widened as she raised it to her face and wrapped it over her nose and mouth, fastening it in the back. "So you don't catch anything."

As the realization that he could only see her eyes jumped out and spooked him, he abruptly rose from the couch. "Penny," he said, his voice low. He ran his suddenly sweaty palms over his shirt, drying them. "Please remove that from your face."

"Really?" she asked, her voice muffled beneath the silk. "Aren't you afraid of my germs?"

Sheldon turned towards the kitchen and kept walking until he was behind the table, then he faced her. "You look like a highway robber, take it off. I'll make you some herbal tea."

In reality, he needed to put as much distance between them as he could. Sheldon wasn't so much afraid of Penny's germs as he was afraid of how quickly his dream of her eyes looking up at him as she knelt before him had come rushing back as soon as she covered her mouth and nose. It was ridiculous, he knew, but he didn't trust himself to be close to her at the moment. He let out a small breath of relief when she finally removed the silk and she was Real Penny again, not Dream Penny.

"Thanks," she said with a smile and closed the door behind her before walking over to sit on the couch. "So you're here by yourself?" she asked as he fumbled around in the kitchen to fill up the tea kettle with water.

"Yes," he answered shortly, concentrating on his hands as they performed a familiar, nominal task. He snuck a quick glance at her and saw her shoulders sag with relief, probably at the fact that she wouldn't have to suffer another awkward encounter with Leonard, and then he returned his gaze to the faucet.

"Cool," she murmured.

He set the kettle on the stove and turned it to medium heat, his heart rate finally returning to normal. He repeated to himself over and over that this was just Penny, and there was no way she could know of his dreams or know that he had watched her from afar in the club last night and the fantasies that resulted. More importantly, she couldn't know of the activity he engaged in outside of said club and that he moaned her name…It was physically impossible. As far as he knew, and he knew nearly everything, mind-reading had not yet been established. He instead concentrated on what brought her over here in the first place: sickness.

"What are your symptoms?" he asked, his voice all business. He turned away from the stove and peered over at her.

"My head hurts and my throat is sort of scratchy. Earlier I was sore all over but after a cold bath, I'm better. I just need an antihistamine or something before I go into work in a few hours."

"You came to the right place," Sheldon answered with a small smirk. _See? _he asked himself. _Just two chums talking about the benefits of a fully-stocked medicine cabinet. _

"I knew you would have something for me."

He gulped. "I do. I'll be back in a moment."

He hurried to the hallway and entered the bathroom, heading straight for the mirrored door above the sink. He opened it and pulled out a box of medication he knew would help and before he closed the door, he saw a small blue tub of Vicks vapo-rub that he remembered was nearly empty. He had a new one at the ready so he grabbed the used one and brought it back to the living room. He came upon Penny slowly, holding the meds and rub out to her.

"Here you go," he said sheepishly as she took it from him with a grateful nod.

"Thank you, Sheldon!" She was beaming at him and now that he was this close to her, he could see the small dark circles beneath her eyes. A small flicker of concern crossed over him.

"You're welcome, Penny. Use as directed. If you need more, feel free to ask." He nodded curtly then walked back to the kitchen and finished fixing the tea. He poured her a mug and walked back to the couch with it, handing it over.

"Sheldon?" she asked. "Can I tell you something?"

"Okay," he answered tentatively, sinking into his spot and pointed his knees towards her. He wished she would take that medicine now. He was concerned that she was only putting on a front for how bad she truly felt. Her color was off and her voice was slightly more raspy than usual. He knew he should feel repelled by her condition, but he was very nearly fighting off the urge to tuck her into bed and watch over her himself. He fought this thought and shook his head as of ridding himself of it. "What do you need to tell me?"

"I just wanted to apologize for last night." This momentarily threw Sheldon and his face must have showed it because she quickly explained. "For being so nosy and cornering you with questions when you came home. It's not my business what you do."

"Oh," he said softly. "Apology accepted." The memory of his crass behavior, answering her queries of his whereabouts with a nearly animalistic grin jolted him and he felt a blush crawl up his neck, hoping she wouldn't notice. He turned away, avoiding her gaze.

"Good." He saw her nod happily through the corner of his eyes before she took a sip from her tea. She swallowed and hesitated before speaking again. "Can I…oh, never mind."

"What?"

"You know that you can trust me, right Sheldon?"

He took a moment before answering her. But it wasn't because he didn't know. He just thought it was a silly question. Why would he get into her deathtrap car or eat a haphazardly cooked meal prepared by her if he didn't trust her? "Yes."

"Well, I'm not trying to be nosy again, but I feel like I owe you an explanation as to why I knew you were out with a woman last night."

He swallowed, fighting the urge to tell her that he already knew how she knew. Instead, he nodded at her to go on.

"Well, last night I went to a club with my girlfriends and as I was leaving, I ran into your friend Barry Krip—"

"He is not my friend, he is my colleague."

"Right," she said with a roll of her eyes. "Anyway, I ran into your _colleague_ and he said that you were with him, but that you met a woman and left with her just moments before I ran into him. How crazy is that? That we ended up at the same place?"

Sheldon didn't believe in coincidences, but he had asked himself that very question. Again, he remained silent, supplying her only with a tight nod.

"Yeah, well, you must have been hiding because I am fairly sure that I would've spotted you in a club." When he didn't reply, Penny continued. "Anyway, that's how I knew. And I know you're a very private person, so I'm not going to tell anyone. But…God, how can I say this without offending you?"

Sheldon sat up straighter and squared his jaw, wondering what point she was attempting to arrive at. "Offend me? How?"

"Well, I know you're not hip on the whole 'taking women home' thing," she started in an uncharacteristically shy tone. "And if you ever want to talk to me, you know, about anything…"

"Penny," Sheldon said, the sprawl of light blush on his neck now traveling up to his cheeks.

"I know I'm not one of the guys," she talked over him quickly, holding out her hand. "But I care about you and I want you to be safe. You've only had one partner before and there's still a lot you have to learn."

"Penny…"

"Seriously, Sheldon. If you need condoms or even have a question about something, no subject is too shocking—"

"_Penny!_"

His eyes were shut tight as he shouted her name but he felt the couch shift slightly and when he opened them, he saw that she had slid a few inches away from him, no doubt startled by his outburst. "Penny, listen to me very carefully. While I appreciate your concern and respect your utmost proficiency in the knowledge of coitus and all of its components, as demonstrated by your enthusiasm for its practice, I would thank you to refrain from offering your expert advice to me." He couldn't help the vehemence in his voice and he looked down his nose at her, watching her blanch at the sound of his tone. "You can take the mug with you if you'd like and return it to me washed when you're through with it. Feel better, Penny." He slowly rose to his feet and turned away, taking measured steps until he reached his bedroom and slammed the door behind him.

He sank slowly to his mattress and gulped a few deep breaths. He was drowning in humiliation.

* * *

She should be offended. But she only felt guilt and stupidity. After she heard his door slam, Penny set down the mug of tea on the coffee table and gathered the medication before she fled back to her apartment. She set the items down on her kitchen counter and began to chew on her lower lip, wondering what the hell had just happened. She remembered walking into his apartment, finding him in his spot, just where she knew he would be, and it immediately lifted her spirits to see him there. He hadn't even seemed to mind that she was sick and within a few feet of him.

Then she had to go and ruin everything with her big, stupid mouth. She should have just stopped at the apology. But when Sheldon didn't deny being with a woman, Penny felt the words just start bubbling out of her like a leaky faucet as the small, nagging feeling she had earlier that rang sort of like jealousy overcame her. She babbled on about condoms and _oh, God! _she called him 'inexperienced' in so many words. No wonder he looked like he wanted to use his mind to make her head explode then in his own so many words called _her _a slut.

What the hell was wrong with her? Why should it matter to her that Sheldon enjoyed the company of a woman last night? She felt her eyes burn with unshed tears as she walked around to her fridge and yanked open the door to grab a bottled water. Twisting the cap, she turned to grab the medicine and ripped it from the package, popping two pills in her mouth before washing it down.

Penny wanted to go back and apologize but felt that it would do more harm than good. Just as one tear fell, she realized she was in danger of losing her one true friend. She couldn't let that happen. Her legs strode quickly out of her kitchen and when she reached her couch, she heard the first round of knocking.

_Knock – Knock – Knock – _"Penny?"

* * *

Before he could stop himself, he was up on his feet and back in the hallway.

"Penny, I…" he trailed off. He saw her still steaming mug of tea on the coffee table and realized she was no longer there. She must have up and left as soon as he insulted her and left her alone. It wasn't his intention to react so rashly to her but at the thought of Penny seeing him as some novice, some _child_ that needed their hand to be held, especially when it came to sex, he felt himself unravel. Had Penny actually been a mind-reader with access to his most impure thoughts, _novice _would be a far cry from what she would consider him.

This is exactly what he wanted to avoid; his baser urges controlling his moods and every thought when he interacted with Penny. He needed to take action. He walked over to his desk and pulled open the first drawer, where inside the black glossy card that Katie handed him last night sat filed in a business card organizer. He yanked it out and studied it before shoving it into the pocket of his khaki slacks. Then he grabbed his windbreaker from the back of his desk chair and picked up his wallet that sat next to his laptop before making haste for the door. Grabbing his keys from the bowl, he walked into the hallway and his eyes immediately went to study Penny's door.

"Damn," he cursed, locking up and hesitating in the space between the stairwell and the broken elevator before his instincts made him walk forward and stop at Penny's door. He leaned forward slightly towards the frame, listening first for any indication that talking to her now would be hazardous. When he was satisfied that Penny wasn't throwing objects in anger, he took a deep, steadying breath before he raised his fist and began to knock.

_Knock – Knock – Knock – _"Penny?"

_Knock – Knock – Knock – _"Penny?"

_Knock – Knock – Knock – _"Penny."

He held his breath, listening harder for her approach. He tensed when he heard her unlock the deadbolt and the door slowly opened, revealing her red face. She said nothing, only staring at him blankly, so he cleared his throat and began.

"Penny. I…" he drug out _I, _his gaze rolling up to the ceiling as he tried to find the words. "…I apologize for my outburst moments ago. It was unwarranted as you were only trying to be helpful." He relaxed a little when he saw a smile crack her sad face.

"Sweetie," she breathed, leaning her head to rest on the door frame. "Don't apologize. I was way out of line to speak to you like that." She was interrupted by the widening of her eyes and she craned her neck to the side, sputtering a throaty cough into her closed fist. Sheldon waited patiently, oddly unaffected by the sight. "I'm sorry," she croaked, stepping away from him. "I need some water. Come in."

"I can't stay," he said even as he followed her inside and tentatively shut the door behind him. "I was just on my way out. But I felt compelled to apologize for my behavior." He let his eyes roam down the back of her as she walked away from him and into the kitchen, reaching for her bottled water.

"Well, thank you. I'm sorry, too. I don't know what came over me, talking to you like that." Penny took a long swig of water before walking back towards the couch where Sheldon was standing. "I won't pry anymore."

"Thank you," he replied softly. He studied her carefully as she stopped about three feet away from him, keeping a distance, no doubt, to make him comfortable. The fact that she was taking care to respect his mysophobia was doing something to him at that very moment that he could not bottle up and inspect. It heated his core, and at the same time he felt something likened to appreciation for her. But the more she widened the girth between them, the more he wanted her to invade his space.

Before he could understand what he was doing, he felt his feet shuffle against her carpet and he took a step closer to her. Then one more step and he was almost touching her. She peered up at him, a look of shock crossing her features. The color was returning to her face as he stood before her, and Sheldon's chest swelled at how powerful he suddenly felt, controlling her circulatory system with his proximity alone. He felt two overwhelming needs: to protect her and to devour her, all at once.

He suddenly wondered what reaction he would receive if he nipped at the golden skin of her neck then trailed the location of the bite with his tongue.

"Sheldon?"

Her voice interrupted his reverie and he quickly regained control before taking a large step back and away from her. "You might want to stay home from work," he said quickly, bringing his long arms behind his back, clasping the fists at the base of his spine. His eyes brushed over her slender neck again. "Your thyroid gland looks swollen, which can be sign of a sinus infection. You'd better call in." He watched her hand absently go to the soft spot between her jaw and her throat and she nodded in understanding, her eyes still watching him cautiously. "Drink plenty of fluids and rest up. Goodbye, Penny." With that, he spun on his heels and reached for her door, slipping out quickly before he could hear her utter a goodbye to him as well.

* * *

Penny knew her imagination was extremely overactive, but she found herself wondering if it was wild enough to make up what had just happened. One minute Sheldon Cooper was not there, and the next he was. Standing in front of her, so close that when she inhaled, the scent of his signature, clean aroma invaded her nostrils, making her slightly dizzy. The blue in his eyes had small black specks and she flushed at how intense those eyes were studying her, flicking across her face and neck like they were trying to memorize her. She could have taken a step back but her legs were planted, her body curious as to what he would do or what he would say next.

And just as suddenly as he was there, he was gone.

She was sitting on her couch when the alarm on her phone reminding her that she had only an hour to get to work blared and pierced the quiet. She ran to her room to silence the alarm before making the call that Sheldon had suggested, figuring she wanted to stay home anyway.

Penny would rest at home for today; it was the doctor's orders, after all. She couldn't be entirely sure of what was happening to her in that very moment, but she was certain that regardless of her cold, she felt better than she had in weeks.

She felt a small smile appear on her lips and her hand automatically went up to the spot on her neck that Sheldon had been studying earlier. Her fingertips gently grazed the spot, gentle yet deliberate, imagining in place of her own hand a pair of bow-shaped lips.

* * *

Sheldon arrived at the large mansion in the gated community by taxicab with every intention of only asking questions. But after she invited him in and the minutes passed by, he had barely gotten a word in edgewise.

As he lied back on the silk sheets of the bed, a masked face bobbed up and down between his legs. His brain went numb, quickly followed by his tongue. He felt relaxed yet taut all at once. He hissed as she brought a hand down beneath her chin and cupped his testicles, tugging them towards her ever so gently, then followed up with waggling her tongue on the sensitive skin. The stress of today's events melted away as he took a sharp turn into his orgasm, the sensation pushing and pulling at the pit of his abdomen before washing him from head to toe. He closed his eyes tight, imagining who he really wanted between his legs at that moment, feeling her so completely that it was almost real.

She collapsed into a plush arm chair that sat directly across the bedroom, giving Sheldon complete space and he was grateful. He took a few minutes to wipe himself off, zip up his pants, run to the adjacent bathroom very quickly to wash his hands, then come back to the bed and relax while he attempted to get his second wind. When he trusted himself to speak, he looked up and saw that Katie removed her mask and was giving him a friendly smile.

"Is this your house?" he asked dumbly, attempting to fill the silence.

She giggled before shaking her head. "No."

"What is this place?"

"A place where freedom and desire reign."

"Katie," Sheldon said softly. He was sitting on the edge of the bed with his feet planted on the floor, staring straight at her. "I am not the type of man who usually engages in behaviors like these."

"No one ever is, until they are."

He considered her words. "Do you…" he winced as he finished his sentence. "…charge?"

"This is not a brothel. This a safe place where adults come together and consensually explore their sexuality, satisfy their urges. Safely. Anonymously." She tugged the mask back on her face and started to walk towards Sheldon, unsnapping the black, stylish high-waisted skirt that had remained on during fellatio. It pooled at the ground and she stepped out of swiftly, advancing on him, a black thong and bra the only items covering her now. "We can do whatever we want, and never do what we don't want." She stopped right in front of him, so close that Sheldon could see the freckles on her flat stomach.

"I don't want anyone to know I come here," he said automatically, staring up at her half-covered face. "I don't want to kiss anybody." She nodded at him to continue, slowly bringing her hands up to unsnap her bra, fumbling with the clasp in the front. He watched as her bra came undone and her breasts exposed themselves to him. He was eye-level with her stiffening nipples.

"Okay. Now what _do_ you want?"

"I want to pretend that you're somebody else." He felt himself rise again, the evidence of his urges protesting against the suffocating fabric of his slacks.

"Then you're in the right place."

An hour later, Sheldon was in another cab on his way home, considerably more relaxed than he had been in days. His panic at having almost ravished Penny in her apartment had been silenced now that he knew he had some place to go whenever the urges threatened to overcome him again.

This way, his routine of sexual release twice a week could be reinstated without the frivolous relationship rules, he wouldn't compromise his friendship with Penny, and he would still have her closer to him than she realized. It would be better this way.

He ignored the fluttering in his stomach that occurred when he thought of Penny and focused on the fact that life was always better when Sheldon Cooper was in control of everything.


	5. Five

**Quick A/N: None of this is real. I'm not deluded enough to believe it will ever be real (although an imagination is a terrible thing to waste!). But it's fun to think about a sexually driven side of Sheldon, and I invite my readers to ****have fun**** thinking about it, too. I don't get paid money to write strictly canon, folks. But I do get paid in reviews to bring the fictitious goods, which is even better (but money would be nice. I'm a college student). **

**I love every single one of your reviews and the PM's that I'm getting. The sounds of the wheels turning in your heads bring me great joy. ;]**

**That being said; sit back, relax, and enjoy-it's just ****fan fiction****.**

* * *

Monday morning could not have arrived sooner. Monday meant the beginning of another work week. And work meant his mind would be occupied with physics and strictly adhered to schedules, two of his favorite things.

Sheldon was anticipating this Monday so much after his perplexing weekend that he went to bed two hours early the evening before, when the sun was still peeking over the brim of the horizon. Even so, he was pleased to discover that he was able to sleep restfully through the night, only waking when his alarm clock began to screech.

He rose from his bed and took a warm, soothing shower then dressed for work. He was seated at the table, spooning the last of his oatmeal into his mouth when Leonard padded into the kitchen slowly, his brown curls messily pouring over his forehead and ears.

"Good morning, Leonard," Sheldon said cheerily, a friendly grin spanning the length of the lower half of his face. "You'd better put some oatmeal in a to-go cup since we're leaving in eight minutes-" He stopped mid-sentence as another person peeked their head out of the hallway.

"Hello, Dr. Cooper."

"No!" Sheldon wailed, slamming his spoon down into the empty bowl.

"Sheldon…" Leonard started, holding one hand up in surrender while the other arm went behind him to wrap around Alex's waist who was currently peering fearfully at Sheldon over her boyfriend's shoulder.

"Roommate Agreement, section 16, line two: Alex Jensen is not allowed to stay overnight, no exceptions, no motions to appeal!"

"Sheldon," Leonard said again, sternly glancing at him over his glasses. "Alex is my girlfriend. I'm not going to agree to that ridiculous amendment."

"Alex is my former employee," Sheldon said indignantly, tossing his empty bowl into the sink. Alex winced at the loud clatter. "This is a conflict of interest."

"No," Leonard corrected. "It would be a conflict of interest if she was _still_ your employee."

"She's a grad student. This is highly unethical."

"I'm not a professor!" Leonard dropped his hands to his side in exasperation.

"Well," Sheldon said, jutting his chin out angrily. "Then, I just don't approve of it."

"Well, I'm sorry this makes you uncomfortable, but as long as I live here, my girlfriend will be allowed to stay over whenever she wants."

"I _hardly_ think so." Sheldon moved around the table, his fists tightening by his sides. He wasn't sure what he planned on doing with cocked fists, but it felt right, digging his clipped nails into the pads of his palms as the prospects of a productive, drama-free Monday at work collapsed all around him. "No one is allowed to stay here whenever they want except for the two people who actually do live here." He tossed a hateful glance in Alex's direction, who was still idling behind Leonard. "I call for an emergency roommate meeting starting: now. Alex, please see yourself out."

"No," Leonard groaned in frustration. "I don't want to hear it, Sheldon. This matter is closed-"

"Far from it," Sheldon protested.

"I can go outside," Alex offered. She gave Leonard a timid kiss on his cheek, causing Sheldon to cringe. "I'll wait by your car."

"Why on earth would you wait by Leonard's car?" Sheldon demanded, but it was Leonard who interjected.

"She needs a ride to school."

"No," he gasped, taking a step back from his smaller friend as he shook his head. "She's not riding to Caltech with us."

"Sheldon, she has class in an hour and we're headed to the school anyway, so yes, she's riding with us. Just because she doesn't work with you anymore doesn't mean she fails to exist." Leonard walked over to his desk, picked up his satchel, then joined Alex by the door. "You said yourself that we need to leave in eight minutes." He pointedly looked at his wristwatch, "Well, in five minutes, now. Are you coming or not?"

"Leonard," Sheldon said, crossing his arms over chest, his eyes sparkling with defiance. "This transgression will not go unpunished." He watched as Leonard rolled his eyes and turned to go, grabbing his keys from the bowl. He began to panic as the couple opened the door, poised to leave him and his empty threats behind. "I mean it."

"Yeah, well, sign me up for another behavioral correction class and I'll be sure to take it as soon as my busy schedule allows," Leonard retorted with another roll of his eyes. He held the door wide open with one hand. Alex stood in the hall, hovering at the staircase yet still watching the confrontation between roommates unfold with wide, fearful eyes.

"Last chance, Sheldon. Are you coming with us or are you going on an adventure courtesy of public transportation today?"

"How could you do this to Penny?"

The question was airborne, stagnant between them, and for a moment Sheldon didn't know who had asked it, until he felt his lips come to rest and he realized it had been him. He felt his chin tremble with an emotion he could not readily identify. It was a hot, boiling feeling that started in his chest and the vapors rose to his cheeks, reddening his skin every time he saw that tart Alex Jensen flaunt around their apartment.

When it came to her and Leonard, instead of his usual befuddled and irritated feelings towards his roommate's feat into another doomed-to-fail relationship, Sheldon only felt ire. When he saw Alex, he saw red. She represented Penny's pain.

Sheldon was new at experiencing such raw emotions as these but he knew that Alex wasn't the only one at fault. Leonard was the proverbial bad guy here, too. But he couldn't bring himself to hate his best friend and the one whom he had come to depend on as much as he hated the woman whom he had trusted with his work. Alex, who had been left alone on many occasions in his office where his brilliance had been sprawled on whiteboards and printed on proposals, all at her fingertips. She couldn't be trusted. She put a bad taste in his mouth. The fires of his fury were momentarily fanned as he saw Leonard's eyes shoot ice cold daggers at him and he was startled by his sudden mood change.

"Sheldon, I've told you once before that what happens in my romantic life is not your concern." Leonard's voice dropped a register as he took a few steps away from the door and slowly advanced on Sheldon. "But for some reason, you refuse to grasp this concept. So let me say this in a way that will get my point across and perhaps will answer your question once and for all. My love life is none of your _fucking _business." His hand was in the air, stabbing it with his fingers every with every syllable. By the time he was through speaking, Sheldon's eyes had widened to the size of softballs and he had backed up a few steps, slightly intimidated by the vehemence of Leonard's speech.

"Leonard," Alex called from the door, her voice urgent and slightly sad. "Come on, stop." Hearing her voice broke Sheldon's trance and he suddenly became very aware of his anger again. He stopped leaning back and squared his feet, glaring down at Leonard and meeting his eyes pound for pound as they stood right in front of their desks in the middle of the living room.

"What's with your concern for Penny lately, huh?" Leonard ignored her, sneering at his taller roommate. "Do you have a crush on her, or something?" Then he spoke softly, perhaps so that Alex couldn't hear him. "You think now because she's not taken anymore you can slide in and take my place?"

Sheldon was suddenly jolted into a memory of his childhood when his older brother George Jr. had taken him outside and tried to teach him how to fight. The younger Cooper boy had looked up at his brother and huffed in aggravation, assuring him that he would never need to revert to an act as barbaric as fighting because he had the advantage of a far more superior mind than anyone that he could be matched with. In seconds, George Jr. had him on the ground, face in the dirt with a punch to the gut, gasping for breath and his t-shirt pulled over his head.

_"You ain't too smart to get an ass whoopin'," he drawled. _

After he had regained his breathing and shakily got back up on his feet that day 23 years ago, Sheldon had glared at his brother through the sweat that had begun to fall down his face and realized he had never wanted to hit anyone so badly in his life.

Until now.

"Don't talk about her," Sheldon said suddenly, his voice harsh and barely above a whisper. "Don't you ever talk about her."

"Wow," Leonard laughed humorlessly as he leaned back and crossed his arms tightly over his chest. "You really do like her. How cute is that?"

"Shut up," Sheldon warned, his fists tightening as they rested by his hips. Leonard must have caught the fervor in his warning because the patronizing grin immediately dropped from his face and was replaced by a bewildered and almost concerned expression. He opened his mouth to say something else but they were both distracted by a disturbance at the open door.

"What the hell is going on in here?"

Leonard whirled around and Sheldon's eyes snapped up, his heart thumping faster. In front of Alex stood Penny, her eyes puffy from sleep and her hair messily pulled up into a lazy bun. She was dressed in her Cheesecake Factory uniform and had her car keys clutched tightly in one hand, the other hand on her hip.

"Well?" she demanded again. She turned to give Alex a questioning look.

The girl stammered, gazing hesitantly at Penny before tossing Leonard a glance that said '_help me'_.

"Nothing, Penny," Leonard said quickly. He kept his back to Sheldon as he walked towards the door, sliding past his neighbor. "Alex and I are going to work now. Sheldon is taking the bus." With that, he placed his hand at the small of his girlfriend's back and guided her down the stairs without another word.

"What an asshole!" Penny exclaimed loudly enough that Sheldon was sure Leonard had heard her, but she didn't seem to care. She turned around to face him, tossing her head a little to the side so that her bangs moved out of her eyes. "Why isn't he driving you to work?"

It took a few seconds for Sheldon's teeth to release their clench on his tongue, allowing him to speak. He whooshed out a breath, unaware that he had been holding one and then blinked a few times, feeling his blood pressure immediately begin to lower. He shook his head once then relaxed his fists, flexing some feeling into his fingers again before he answered Penny.

"Because I refused to get into the car with him and that vile woman." He sniffed before he looked down at his desk chair and grabbed his own satchel, strapping it in place across his chest. Only then did he look up and meet Penny's imploring eyes and felt his stomach flip slowly. She was searching him, knowing that his explanation was insufficient, he realized. She had always been the most intuitive person he knew.

"Are you okay?" she asked finally, the silence becoming too much for her as well.

"I am," he assured her, avoiding her eyes once again, afraid she would see every thought running rampantly through his mind at the moment if she managed eye contact. He studied the wooden tile on his floor before the reality of his ride situation settled in. "Penny, I see that you're adorned in your work uniform. I assume this is because you are headed there now and not because you are out of clean clothes to wear, although this wouldn't be too ridiculous an assumption." He cleared his throat as her intense gaze finally waned and she shot him an annoyed look. "I digress. Would it be possible for you to drop me off at the university before you go to work?"

"I love it when you ask me so nicely, like a regular person," she retorted. "Yeah, sure. I'll give you a ride. Come on, let's go."

She waited patiently for Sheldon to grab his windbreaker and his house keys before she moved out of the way so he could shut the door and lock up behind them. He could feel her eyes on his back, studying him, probably wanting more than just his simple answer about what had happened with Leonard. But Sheldon didn't know how to explain it; when Penny had walked in, she had caught the tail end of what Sheldon was sure was the prelude to the ass-beating of a lifetime.

He liked to think so anyway. Sheldon wasn't well-versed in the art of fighting, having never completed his "fight training" with George Jr. once his mother found out and ultimately put a stop to it, but he had enough anger bubbling over the surface when he saw the glint in Leonard's eye as he spoke of Penny so disgustingly. As though she were disposable, an item that had lost its novelty. And how he had accused Sheldon of wanting to "slide in" and "replace" him. Sheldon internally grimaced at the word _replace. _Leonard spoke of Penny like all anyone needed in order to court her was opposable thumbs. At least, that's how Sheldon heard it in his mind.

He felt a stab of fear knowing that ever since he had seen her crying on her couch the night of the break-up, Sheldon had been aggressively defensive of the subject of Penny whenever she came up in apartment 4A. Perhaps to a fault, as evidenced by Leonard's knowing tone and accusation.

His anger flared up as he realized he had not even defended himself. Of course he didn't have a _crush _on Penny. What was this, high school?

Before he could continue stewing in his own head, he felt the soft brush of fingers along his forearm. He realized that after he locked his front door, he had been standing in front of it, scrutinizing it as he went on a rampage in his head for a few moments longer than was normal. He looked down and saw Penny releasing her touch in order to get his attention. Standing so close to her, Sheldon smelled a subtle hint of raspberries. Her soft, messy hair and eyes, still puffy as though she had not been awake for very long, gave him a stir. He found it hard not to stare at her.

Finally, he offered her a nervous, tight smile before they began their descent down the flights of stairs, neither of them saying a word. When they reached the third floor landing, Penny looked up at him, smiling brightly, and he furrowed his eyebrows at her, confused as to what could have put her in such a good mood in the time it took to walk down one flight of stairs.

"Yes?" he asked her expectantly.

"What?" she said, her smile faltering a tiny bit. "I can't smile at my friend?"

"I suppose," Sheldon relented, still studying her with wary eyes. "But you do realize that it 7:45AM, do you not?"

"Uh huh."

"And," Sheldon added as they made it to the second floor. "That 7:45AM is well before 11AM."

"Yep."

"No urge to punch anybody in the throat?"

"Nuh-uh," she grunted, a smile still donning her face. Sheldon nodded thoughtfully.

_Perhaps there is hope for her yet._

They finally made it outside before Sheldon resumed his questioning. "Why are you going to work so early? I didn't think the Cheesecake Factory served breakfast."

"I have to go run some errands before I open at 10:30," she explained as they walked up to her car parked at the curb about twenty feet away from the entrance. "My plans to go pay some bills and do some shopping had been delayed after I got sick on Saturday." Sheldon immediately straightened and he watched over the roof of Penny's car as she unlocked her door and ducked her head before jumping inside. He could have sworn he saw her smiling again, but in a very shy, unsure way. He shook his head as he heard her unlock his door from the inside. He opened it and climbed in next to her.

"Anyway," she continued. "I finally feel a lot better today, so I'm going to go do everything before I have to go to work. I'm working from open to close today to make up for my missed shift. It's gonna be a long day." She pushed the key into the ignition and turned twice before the engine finally roared to life, both to Sheldon's relief and Penny's. "I didn't get a chance to thank you again for the medicine. It really helped me."

"You're welcome," Sheldon said with a small smile. He didn't trust himself to speak anymore as thoughts of his very close encounter with Penny in her living room before he left to meet Katie flooded his brain like lights, exposing the graphic memories of his being serviced twice before he came home. He pursed his lips and clasped his hands together, resting them on his lap.

"It's a bummer I got sick, though," Penny said suddenly as she signaled and merged into traffic. "I was gonna ask you to a movie yesterday."

Sheldon froze for a moment before he craned his neck slowly and turned to look at the side of Penny's face. "You were?"

"Yeah," she confirmed, sneaking a quick glance at him before returning her gaze to the street. "My treat. To say thank you for taking care of me on Saturday."

"Penny, that's not necessary," he immediately protested, looking down at his lap again. "I was just being a good neighbor." He didn't look up but he thought he could feel her flinch. A very uncharacteristic urge to cover his cold comment flew out of his lips before he could stop it. "And a good friend. Because you would have done the same for me." He finally risked a glance at her and was relieved to see that he most likely said the right thing, as evidenced by the satisfied smirk on her face.

"You're right, sweetie," she said. "I would have done the same thing. But still, I would have liked to hang out with you. I don't feel like we've really hung out just me and you. Remember that time we went to Disneyland together?"

Sheldon shifted uncomfortably in his seat. All those years ago, Sheldon had a very different scope on his alone time with Penny. He had an idea that spending a day with her at Disneyland today would feel very different than it had before. "Yes. That was fun."

"Sure was," she agreed as she watched the road. "But that cool movie _Gravity_ just came out, and there were some really good reviews for it. We should go watch it!"

"I saw the preview," Sheldon said thoughtfully, staring out the window as he watched the palm trees roll by. "I experienced difficulty breathing."

"Huh?"

"The experience of zero-gravity is not something I intend on ever suffering through unless I'm sufficiently anesthetized for the duration of transport to a new planet once we've dried this one up."

"God, Sheldon, it's just a movie."

"I'm aware of that, but it's not one I wish to see."

"Fine, forget the movie," Penny said with a good-natured roll of her eyes. "What do you want to do?"

A flicker of excitement ignited in Sheldon before he turned to look at Penny. "Professor Richard Ellis is giving a lecture on the `Dark Ages', a period of intergalactic time when clouds of hydrogen assembled under gravity and eventually collapsed to ignite as the first stellar systems, on Wednesday night."

Her eyebrows pushed together and her mouth was slightly agape, her tongue lightly rubbing along the bottom row of her teeth and Sheldon tried not to focus on the pink, slippery flesh as he waited for her answer.

"Hold on," she finally said as they rolled into the parking lot of Caltech. "You want to listen to some old guy talk about gravity and space but you won't watch an action-packed_ movie_ about space?"

"Penny," Sheldon said, shaking his head. "_Gravity_ is a 90 minute ploy to get people to pay twelve dollars to watch a couple of goofs float around unrealistically. If you want to watch an action-packed movie about space, I have several DVD collections of movie franchises that we can watch in the comfort of my living room."

Penny eased into a parking spot right near the entrance that was closest to Sheldon's office. He was still watching her when she turned and faced him, a peculiar smile lifting one side of her mouth coyly.

"Okay," she said.

He perched his eyebrows, willing her to continue. "'Okay', what?"

"Let's do that."

"I'm sorry?" he asked, confused.

"Let's watch some DVD's on your couch. I'll bring all your favorite snacks and we can chill. Me and you."

"Chill?" he asked again, just as confused as before. "Penny, how is watching movies on my couch any different from what we all do every week?

"Okay, then we'll watch them on _my _couch."

Sheldon was watching her closely enough, only being a foot and some inches away from her, but he still couldn't be sure what to make of the relaxed grin on her face that was in stark contrast with her suddenly animated eyes. Either way, the sight of her, along with the prospect of spending an evening on her couch alone, made his insides pop and crackle like sparks. After all of the inner turmoil he had been experiencing lately, all of the arrangements he had made with Katie in order to suppress his disturbing and stirring desire for physically knowing Penny, Sheldon should have declined. He should have thanked her for the ride and proposed seeing her some other time.

Instead, his head began to nod and quickly his lips followed in agreement. "Okay."

"Okay," she echoed, and Sheldon's nerves gasped in awe as he watched Penny's eyes drop lazily down to watch his lips. The sparks got higher, hotter, and started to burn. He was stunned back to reality.

"Alright, well, if you would give me at least 24 hours' notice of when you would like to commence our 'chill', as well as what movies and other supplies to bring, I'll be sure to respond promptly." He stuttered a few times and pressed his shoulder to his door, putting space between him and Penny.

"Okay?" she laughed, clearly enjoying his sudden delirious behavior.

He grabbed the door handle and prepared to escape. "Thanks for the ride, Penny."

"Anytime, sweetie. Have a good day!" she called after him in an amused tone. He nodded and shut the door, spinning on his heels and walking quickly to the doors and disappearing inside. He turned the corners of the long corridors as he made his way to his office, his mind going a mile a minute. He was being pushed and pulled, like he was stuck in an undertow, between being unable to contain his excitement and being horrified by the ramifications.

_Penny is still my friend_, he reasoned with himself. _We just spent an entire ten minutes in the car together and I was fine. Wasn't I? _

Up until the end there, Sheldon had felt normal, enjoying the triviality of their banter. And then her lips suggested a movie night while her eyes suggested God knows what. He shook his head, chastising himself until he finally arrived at his office door. He walked straight in and rounded his desk until he collapsed into his chair, allowing his mind to run wild for a few moments before he could collect himself. It was a little while before he realized that he could still smell the aroma of raspberries.

Sheldon took a deep, steadying breath, exhaled, and then smiled.

So much for a productive Monday.

* * *

Penny had over-exerted herself this weekend.

The urge began Saturday night after she had slept in all day, the remnants of her cold already leaving her thanks to the powerful working ingredients in the decongestant that Sheldon had lent her.

At first, she was unsure. She hovered at the mouth of her closet for ten minutes, pacing back and forth, toeing random articles of clothing and shoes with her bare feet as her eyes zoned in on a purple velvet bag on the top shelf. A bag she had not opened in about six months, and only then because her and Leonard had gotten into a big fight for something she couldn't even remember and she had to polish out her frustration.

She groaned and walked away, heading to her couch to watch TV instead. But before she could flip the set on, she heard apartment 4A's door open, disrupting the silence of her living room thanks to the thin walls in their complex. She looked at the clock on her wall above the TV: _8:15 PM. It must be time for laundry_. Then she rose from the couch and quietly padded to the door, pressing her eye to the peephole.

Sure enough, Sheldon was standing there with his white basket of dirty clothes in one arm, tucked between his hand and hip. But something was different about him. He looked rosy in the cheeks, his shoulders relaxed, his eyes dark. She took a sharp breath at how well defined his eyes looked from her distance, but quickly realized it was because Sheldon had taken a few steps towards her door, now only feet away. His lips were slightly parted and he stood there, clearly going back and forth with himself about something. He zoned in on the peephole and if Penny didn't know any better, she would have thought he could see her. She felt frozen there under the blue of his gaze and she had the sudden urge to whip open the door, but didn't because she was slightly more interested in seeing what he was going to do.

She frowned when after a moment longer, his lustful gaze ripped away from her door and he turned to the stairs then hurried away. She waited a few seconds, holding her breath, almost wanting him to just _come back_. When he didn't, she turned and leaned against her door, her teeth worrying her bottom lip.

Her eyes flitted to her bedroom where she knew just inside was her closet, and just inside of the closet was the velvet bag.

_8:20PM, Saturday night._

"Fuck me," she panted as her legs writhed on her bed, the nude-colored dildo buried in between her thighs. She pressed her shoulder blades into the mattress, kicking her covers away until they pooled to the floor and she lifted her hips, pushing the toy deeper into her until she felt it bump her cervix.

"Fuck me!" Penny's shrieks were muffled by the pillow she pushed on top of her own face.

_10:58PM, Saturday night._

"Come in me," she chanted. She pressed her forehead into the cold tile wall of her shower as the warm water cascaded down her back. She had the dildo angled up into her hole from behind, pulling out and twisting it at her entrance to tease the folds before she pushed it back in again.

"Yes…" She bit her forearm propped up on the wall near her face to stifle her cries as she came.

_6:33AM, Sunday morning. _

Her eyes had not even been able to open fully when she started to palm her breasts, rolling her hands on her hardening nipples through her camisole. She pushed her legs together, feeling the increasing pressure at her core intensify the tighter she squeezed. One hand traveled down between her legs and she pressed two fingers down hard on her clit, lifting her hips to meet the firm contact.

"Sheldon…"

"_Penny," _he replied, in her head of course. "_Come for me_."

"Sheldon! I'm coming!" She felt the inner walls of her vagina quiver in time with her shuddering breaths.

_2:03PM, Sunday afternoon._

She had washed and disinfected the dildo with hopes of putting it away again for awhile, but it sat on her nightstand, pristine yet taunting her with the ability to experience another orgasm. But the last one had frightened her, even though it had been by her own hand, as she shouted Sheldon's name over and over until the tremors finally ceased and she played with the moist result on her fingers.

Three weeks wasn't a long time to be single by anybody's standards, but if she was lying around all night and day, fantasies of Sheldon assisting her in achieving some of the most powerful orgasm's she had ever given herself, she thought that maybe it was a sign to get out there and date again. Not that Sheldon wasn't a delicious vision to behold in her fantasies (so far he had taken her in every position in her mind, even some that could be considered illegal), she couldn't help but feel bad. Sheldon was innocent, child-like, and she was dreaming about him ramming her into oblivion.

Except, that he wasn't innocent. She had seen the evidence for herself when he came home that late night after the club, and again when he stood in her living room, dangerously eyeing her as though he could eat her up.

She leaned over and grabbed the dildo, her center ripening every passing second as she imagined Sheldon closing over her neck with his lips, teasing it with his tongue. She pushed the toy into her mouth, letting her tongue play with it in a way that made her wonder if Sheldon would like it. She sighed against it, letting her fingers wonder down until she purred in satisfaction, allowing the wave of pleasure to wash over her and outweigh the shame.

_Present day._

Penny reversed out of the parking spot and slowly navigated her car through the foot traffic on the campus. She was still smiling long after Sheldon jumped out of the car and made his way inside. Making men nervous was something she had loved for as long as she could remember, and seeing Sheldon stumble over his words was no exception.

It wasn't a lie that Penny had thought to ask Sheldon out to a movie yesterday night, but the thought wasn't as strong as the other one about suggesting that he lie on top of her for awhile, so she refrained from walking over and asking him out for the evening. She could still feel the dull ache of her tired thighs and lower back, really having outdone herself the past two days. She woke this morning more tired than she preferred, but knew she had to get up to run errands before work. As she left her apartment, she heard two male voices hissing at each other and she looked up to see Alex wringing her hands together like a scared child, watching something go down inside of the men's apartment. She immediately walked up and saw the obvious confrontation between her two neighbors and was concerned that Sheldon hadn't relayed to her as to what it was about; usually she couldn't get him to shut up about his gripes.

But when he asked her for a ride to work, suddenly, the vivid memories of her marathon masturbating surfaced and she was sure he could see it on her face. She immediately agreed to give him a ride anyway; even though she was still ashamed that he had been the star of her very naughty mental movies, being close to him stirred something inside of her, reminding her of how _good _he had been. A rough, controlling dominator on Saturday night, and a gentle, thorough lover on Sunday. Before she could stop it, she had grinned up at him like an idiot as they walked down the stairs, much to his confusion.

Now, as she merged onto the highway, on her way to run her errands, she was still smiling. She wasn't sure what had come over her when she invited Sheldon over to her place for a movie, but Penny was a girl, and sometimes it was fun to play with fire. She didn't feel as though she was in any real danger of violating any boundaries.

_It's not like Sheldon would ever be game to have sex with me_, she told herself.

But she was single and so was he. There's no reason she couldn't flirt with him a little. But she would tame herself because regardless of how well Amy was doing now without Sheldon, much to Penny and Bernadette's surprise, she somehow doubted that Amy would be okay if she somehow found out that Penny slept with him.

Sheldon was still her friend, and friends could watch movies on the couch together without crossing lines.

She drove along for a few minutes, humming to herself before she laughed aloud suddenly, quickly pressing a hand to her forehead as a vision of Sheldon's blue eyes and long fingers, the two main catalysts of her fantasies, abruptly appeared in her mind.

_Just some harmless, single girl fantasies, right?_

"Oh, Penny," she mumbled. She willed the fluttering in her stomach to cease, but her internal demands fell on deaf ears and the wings of the butterflies continued to flap, nearly causing her to take flight.

* * *

There was a swift rap on Sheldon's office door as he typed away on his laptop.

"Come in," he called loudly over the pops of his keyboard. He glanced down at clock on the bottom right corner of his screen; 3:39PM. He sighed in annoyance as his 3:30 appointment poked his head in.

"What's up?" Howard asked, entering the office and closing the door behind him. "You wanted to see me?"

"You're late. I penciled you into my schedule at half-past the hour and it is now closer to a quarter 'til."

"Sheldon, I didn't have to come at all. Tonight is Thai takeout night and I'm going to be at your apartment in like four hours." Howard pointedly glanced at his wrist watch then gave Sheldon a dirty look.

"Well, I'm sure MIT didn't hold you accountable for many things, relevant academic achievement and promptness included, so I can hardly be sore at you for that." Sheldon sighed and ignored Howard's scowl. "Anyway, have a seat." His voice was all business as he pointed at the chair across his desk and closed his laptop lid with the other hand.

"I'll stand," Howard said flatly, crossing his arms.

"No, I'd feel much better if you sit."

"Sheldon, I've been in here for 15 seconds and I've been chastised, insulted, and annoyed. That's record time even for you. Now tell me what the hell it is that you wanted so I can go back to work, or save it for later tonight."

"Very well," Sheldon relented, narrowing his eyes. He rose from his seat to stand as well, not liking the idea of Howard looking down at him as he was about to bring up a very delicate subject. He joined his hands behind his back, resting them at the base of his spine as he studied Howard carefully. This was a conversation he had been thinking about having since the morning after his tryst with Katie, but Sheldon was too mortified at first to bring it up. But the longer he thought about it (it, in fact had distracted him from getting _any _meritable work done today, as well as thoughts of Penny and the memory of his row with Leonard this morning), the more Sheldon realized that this situation should be contained before giving it any chance to get out of hand. Howard clucked like a hen when it came to talking about other people's business.

"You told Kripke about me and Amy terminating our relationship."

Howard's smug face was abruptly wiped clean and just as he looked as though he was about to deny it, Sheldon shook his head and held up his palm. "Don't deny it, Howard. You'll only embarrass yourself. Listen, I just wanted to inform you that I am aware of what you did. And this will be the only time I'm going to tell you this." Sheldon leaned forward, placing his hands flat on his desk as he narrowed his eyes at his not-so treasured acquaintance. "Please keep in mind that my affairs are just that—mine. It would be best for everyone if you keep whatever it is Kripke told you to yourself."

"What do you mean, what Kripke told me?" Howard attempted to sound clueless, but Sheldon could read the guilt on his face plain as day.

"I don't need to elaborate," Sheldon huffed. "You and that man gossip like women, and I would appreciate it if you both would leave my life alone."

"Wait." Howard took a step towards Sheldon's desk, his eyes suddenly widening along with his smile. "You met her."

Sheldon blanched but tried to keep his face from twitching. "I'm sorry?"

"You met that chick, didn't you!" Howard exclaimed before looking over his shoulder to make sure Sheldon's door was closed. "Look, I swear I won't say anything to anybody, but you've gotta tell me—how was it?"

"Howard," Sheldon said tiredly, hoping his face was just as nonresponsive, but his cheek trembled and he doubted it. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"You went to that club and met that chick Kripke told us about, don't be coy." His skinny friend's eyebrows waggled and Sheldon thought he was going to be sick. This conversation was not going according to plan.

"Did you bang her?" When he saw Sheldon begin to protest, Howard continued quickly. "Look, we're men, this is how we always talk, this isn't new. Maybe only to you because you've only recently entered puberty and learned what your special parts are good for, and I'm proud of you buddy, really, I am. Now, give me details."

"Howard, please go."

"Come on, I'm a married man. I so rarely have the ability to hear anything scandalous these days."

"Out," Sheldon said sharply, pointing his arm towards his door until his finger extended. "_Now._"

"Fine, whatever," Howard relented as he turned to leave. He stopped quickly and spoke again over his shoulder. "I won't say anything, Sheldon. I promise. I'm glad you had fun." Then he gave one wicked wink, causing Sheldon to shudder in disgust, and was gone.

"Good _Lord_," he murmured with his face in his hands as he sank into his chair and slammed his elbows down on his desk. He sat that way for awhile before a buzzing in his pocket distracted him. He pulled out his iPhone and glanced at the message flashing on the screen. It was from Penny.

- _Movie on Saturday after u do laundry? I'll bring REDVINEZZZ. ;)_

Sheldon both hated reading it and loved it all at once. Her horrible spelling and texting etiquette was enough to make him cringe, but the same sparks he had felt earlier while sitting next to her in the car hissed and popped from within, causing him to smile as he thumbed a curt reply.

_Acceptable. Diet Coke will also suffice._

He was grateful for the long week ahead of them before their scheduled movie night. He would have time to prepare, coach himself into behaving appropriately around Penny and control his urges as they sat on her couch. He had never had trouble with it before, so he was hopeful that he would have no trouble with it on Saturday.

With this thought in mind, Sheldon opened a new message and texted a phone number that wasn't saved in his phone, but in his mind.

_Are you available tomorrow night for our arrangement?_

He waited only seconds before his phone buzzed again.

_- Of course. See you then. XX, Katie_


	6. Six

**A/N: Sorry this chapter is so long. There were a few places I could have cut it off but then that would have been asking for an angry mob of readers waiting on my lawn with lit torches and pitch forks. Please understand I had to cut it off somewhere. More to follow soon, I promise. Remember—the slow road to Shenny is better than no road to Shenny. Enjoy. ;]**

* * *

Sheldon didn't bother to look for Leonard when the work day was done, instead opting to corner Raj in his office before he left.

_Knock - Knock - Knock - _"Raj?"

"Come in, Sheldon."

_Knock - Knock - Knock - _"Raj."

"Sheldon, damnit, the door is wide open. You're looking right at me."

_Knock - Knock - Knock - _"Raj. You know this isn't optional."

Raj let out a long, drawn out sigh before continuing to shut down his computer. "What do you want, Sheldon?"

The theoretical physicist shuffled in, his hands joined together in front of him. "It looks like you're heading out for the day."

"I am."

"Would it be possible for you to take me home?"

"I wouldn't mind, Sheldon, but I actually have plans with Stewart after work. Why can't Leonard give you a ride?" Raj stuffed all of his sensitive paperwork into his file cabinets, locked them up, then his eyes swept around the room once more before he decided he was ready to leave.

"Leonard and I had a disagreement this morning that I'm afraid will take far longer than a nine hour work day to resolve. Therefore I don't want to ask him for a ride home."

"What happened?" Raj asked with concern. "Did he talk to you through the bathroom door again?"

"No—"

"Sneeze in front of you and not wash his hands afterward again?"

Sheldon grimaced at the disgusting memory. "No, Raj, it's a bit more complicated than that. Please, take me home?"

"Ask Howard."

"Raj, if anyone was a better choice, trust me, I would have asked. You are my last resort. Happy? Now, take me home. Please."

They stared each other down for a moment before Raj's shoulders finally slouched and he nodded. "Hurry up. I don't want to be late." Sheldon didn't ask and Raj didn't bother explaining what he didn't want to be late for. They got inside the car and as they turned onto Euclid Avenue, Sheldon's mind idled, thoughts of this morning, his ride to work with Penny, trickling into his brain. A few minutes into the silence, Sheldon was daring to venture into wondering what she would be wearing Saturday night when Raj interrupted.

"So what did you and Leonard fight about?"

Sheldon frowned as his thoughts of Penny dissipated into oblivion. "Alex spent the night in the apartment although our agreement explicitly forbids it." His mood soured and he pursed his lips. Staring out the window, he watched joggers pass by.

"Sheldon," Raj began hesitantly. "I'm not happy about Leonard cheating on Penny either. But we all have to move on. Penny's moved on, hasn't she?"

Sheldon kept staring out the window as his face heated. He warned himself not to berate the man who was driving the car that was currently taking him home. It wouldn't be outrageous to believe that he would be dropped off at the corner and made to walk the rest of the way to the apartment; it had certainly happened plenty of times before with other friends. He cleared his throat and spoke quietly.

"How do I know if she has 'moved on'? My insistence that Alex doesn't spend the night has nothing to do with Penny." He paused when from the corner of his eye, he saw Raj turn his face to give him a long, meaningful look.

"Really? It has nothing to do with Penny?"

Sheldon's face got hotter. "Just what are you trying to insinuate, Rajesh?"

Raj turned his head and faced the road again. "Nothing. I just don't want you and Leonard to fight."

The rest of the ride was just as quiet as before, Raj chewing on his bottom lip in thought and Sheldon stewing once again over how transparent he apparently had been to his friends. Did everyone in his social circle think he had a _crush _on Penny? He was beside himself with humiliation. He had no feelings for Penny that went beyond platonic friendship.

His stomach fluttered as he tried to repeat his last thought inside of his head. Suddenly, walking home didn't seem like it would have been such a bad idea.

They finally pulled up to Sheldon's apartment complex and he reached for the handle immediately. He mumbled a quick '_thanks for the ride'_ to Raj and climbed out of the car, slamming the door shut behind him. He felt as though his nerves were being stretched, plucked, and frayed. His heart was pounding angrily and he realized his fists were clenched so tightly that his fingers ached. He began to walk up the steps inside and took the opportunity to try and relax. What did Raj know? What did any of his friends know?

By the third floor, Sheldon's teeth were clenched so tightly that his entire head ached. This was a familiar sensation. His feet felt like lead, his body was stiff as a board. He did a mental inventory of what day and time it was: Monday, 5:35PM.

Monday evenings were one of the designated times he and Amy allotted for coitus. Thus, his body was once again beginning to feel the tense coil of anticipation. He tried to soothe himself and assure his body that in a short few hours, he would meet Katie, have his needs met, then all would be fine.

When he made it to the fourth floor he was slightly more relaxed, until he tossed a casual glance to the right and Penny's door came into view. He wondered if she was in there. His body lurched forward and he took a few steps towards 4B before stopping himself, shaking his head quickly. He definitely needed to get his urges under control before he could see Penny. Turning around, he unlocked his door with haste and slipped inside his apartment.

* * *

"So what's new?" Bernadette chirped after taking a sip from her blue colored martini.

"Nothing at all." Penny stifled a yawn and blinked through her watery eyes at her friends. "Sorry, I'm just so exhausted."

"Still feeling sick, Bestie?" Amy asked before sipping from her own drink.

"No, I'm actually better," Penny began, wiping down the bar to distract her trembling hands. _Thanks to your ex-boyfriend, who guess what, by the way? Has been the star of my dirty dreams for the last three days! _"I think I'm just still a little sluggish though."

She was in the last leg of her shift when Bernadette and Amy decided to have an impromptu girl's night at the Cheesecake Factory. She fixed them a couple of drinks on the house and let them drone on about what was going on in their lives while Penny tried to keep her eyes open and look busy. The bar was dead, save for her two friends, but her boss could be a real jerk if he saw her slacking off.

"I want to go out this weekend," Amy said suddenly, waggling her eyebrows meaningfully at her friends. "I mean, really go out and let loose. I even bought a dress for the occasion that shows off my cleavage."

"Look at you, Ames," Penny said with an impressed tone. "Can't wait to see you in it. I'm game. Bernie?"

"I can only go out on Saturday," their petite friend replied. "We have dinner with Howard's mother on Friday night."

"Saturday is good for me, too," Amy agreed with an enthusiastic nod.

Penny smiled and opened her mouth to seal the deal when the word _Saturday_ suddenly unleashed a fresh batch of butterflies into her tummy. She swallowed back her words and looked apologetically at Amy. "I'm sorry, I can't Saturday. I have plans."

"Oh," Amy mumbled. "So I guess this weekend isn't good?"

Penny and Bernadette sadly shook their heads. They all agreed to the weekend after instead and were lulled by a comfortable silence. Penny began to wash some dirty shot glasses with a distant look on her face. She wondered what Sheldon was doing right now.

"Hello? Did you hear me?"

Penny snapped out of her daydream and glanced at Amy who was waving her arms around for attention. "I'm sorry, what?"

"I asked what your plans on Saturday are."

The butterflies were quickly replaced by a hollow ache as Penny was struck with a heavy feeling akin to guilt. But why should she feel guilty? She was hanging out with one of her oldest friends, just like any other night. Alone. On her couch.

"Um, a date. Just some random guy one of my girlfriends set me up with. A blind date." She forced herself to quit talking as she began to ramble.

"Oh, a date!" Amy was appropriately interested. Penny should have seen this coming. "We should go over and help you get dressed. Do you have an outfit picked out? I can do your hair. Of course, any way you style it would be perfect as is, you radiant lioness of a woman. But it would be my pleasure to help spiff you up to get you back on the dating scene."

"It's totally not that big of a deal," Penny said, holding her hands up in protest. "I'm not even psyched about it." _Butterflies._ "I won't get dressed up or anything. It's just coffee around the corner from my apartment."

"Well, what do you guys have in common?" Bernadette piped up, leaning towards the bar with rapt attention. "Your friend must have seen some similarities to set you up with him."

"We don't have…anything…in common," Penny said carefully. It was mostly true. "She just thought it would be a nice change of pace for me, to go out with this guy."

"Well, if he turns out to be a dud, you give us a call and we can meet for drinks," Amy said, satisfied. Penny let out a _whoosh_ of relief when she saw her boss coming towards her. "Sorry guys, I've gotta look busy now. I'll call you guys this week?"

They both nodded in agreement and finished their martinis, leaving generous tips in her glass jar. They waved and were gone just as Nick arrived.

"You can go home now, we look pretty dead," he said gruffly before turning on his heels without another word.

"Thanks," she muttered to herself before gathering her tips and closing out her register. Thoughts of her Saturday night 'blind date' invaded her mind and she let a small smile creep across her lips. She didn't know why she felt so insistent on hiding her real weekend plans from her girlfriends, but she figured it had to do with the fact that once Sheldon slipped into her dreams, there was nothing innocent about it anymore. She couldn't lie to herself and say she wasn't excited.

Penny tried to keep her thoughts pure, but they kept going back to Sheldon and the possibilities of what Saturday night held in store. And until she figured out the source of the butterflies in her stomach every time she thought of her whack-a-doodle friend, she would keep these feelings to herself.

* * *

Sheldon thumbed a quick text to Katie, approximating his estimated arrival time. Then he did a quick inventory of his person. He had slipped two condoms into his wallet, brands and sizes of his own preference because he did not know what Katie had. He dressed as inconspicuous as possible; one of the three pairs of denim jeans he owned, this particular pair was black. He completed it with a black polo and a black hoodie.

He was standing at his desk, shutting down his laptop when he heard the keys jingle in the lock at the door. He tried not to, but his gaze immediately met with Leonard's as he walked over the threshold. They held each other's eyes for a moment before Sheldon broke contact first and returned his attention to his computer.

"Hey," Leonard said softly, tossing his keys into the bowl and shutting the door behind him.

"Hey," Sheldon echoed grudgingly.

"Are you on your way out?"

Sheldon exhaled through his nose. "Yes, and I'll be late. Don't wait up." He felt his cheek twitch and he bear down on his teeth, hoping that would be the last question for the night. But his hopes were for naught.

"Can I talk to you first?" Leonard asked in a pleading tone.

"What is it, Leonard?"

"I just…" When he didn't continue, Sheldon straightened his frame and turned his full attention on his roommate. Leonard's shoulders were sagged and he eyed Sheldon with a bleary look. "I just want to say that I'm sorry for being such an ass this morning."

Sheldon definitely wasn't expecting that. He did his best to keep the scorn out of his face as he nodded in acknowledgement. "Apology accepted. Have a good night." He took a few strides towards the door but when Leonard didn't move out of his way, he was forced to make eye contact with him again. "Is that all?"

"No," he said loudly. "That's not all, Sheldon. Don't you have anything to say to me?"

Sheldon knew where this was going. It was where every argument with Leonard went, whether or not Sheldon was at fault (in the extremely rare event that he was). Leonard wanted an apology from him, an apology he would have to keep waiting for.

"I always tell anyone who enters into a binding contractual agreement with me that they are free to retain a lawyer to avoid situations such as this. I specifically asked one thing of you, after all of your gallivanting around with that tart, that Alex Jensen not be allowed to spend the night here. And you agreed. Sure, it was 3 AM and you signed the amendment to get me out of your room, but you signed it nonetheless." He saw Leonard open his mouth but he continued, raising his voice so to discourage him from interrupting. "Therefore, I will not apologize for only enforcing the rules."

After a moment of silence, Leonard crossed his arms over his chest and shook his head. "Yeah, should have known this wasn't going to be easy. Look, Sheldon, you're my roommate and my best friend. I don't want to fight with you every time I bring my girlfriend over. Can you please, just for one second, put yourself in my shoes?"

Sheldon failed to see how ramming his significantly larger feet into Leonard's size 8 Converse sneakers would help the situation. He was about to tell him this when Leonard must have caught on to his confusion and stopped him.

"I don't mean literally. It's an expression of course. Just try to see this from my perspective. What if when you were with Amy, I tried to enter into the agreement that she not be allowed to stay the night?"

"Irrelevant," Sheldon immediately argued. "Amy was never allowed to spend the night. My bed only accommodates _my_ optimal sleeping conditions and adding her to the equation would have—"

"What if it were Penny?" Leonard's eyes shined brilliantly as he successfully shut Sheldon up. "Yeah, what if you and Penny were dating, and I forbid her from spending the night here?"

Sheldon sputtered his response while his cheeks enflamed almost immediately. "I'm sorry. I fail to see how that is an appropriate alternative, being that I have no desire to ask Penny to spend the night."

"Okay, forget about girlfriends spending the night for a minute and focus on what I'm saying to you now. Sheldon, I know you like Penny. If the last 6 and a half years haven't made it obvious, then the last three weeks since our break-up definitely has. If you don't want to admit it to me, then fine. But we can all see how you treat her now, how you care for her. You carry her torch and smash the torch into Alex's face every time she comes around." He paused for a moment before adding in a soft voice, "I'm not proud of myself for what I did to Penny, but it's not something I'm prepared to speak to you about because it's my business. I just don't want you taking your anger with me out on my girlfriend."

Sheldon studied the floor as his blood pressure rose. He suddenly felt trapped like a rat, caught between being unable to refute Leonard's blasted accusations and his anger that he even allowed himself to care about what his roommate was saying to begin with. Then, the fact that he was now severely behind schedule to catch the bus that would take him directly to Katie's place began to gnaw at him, and he searched for the fastest thing to say to get him out of this conversation.

"I accepted your apology Leonard and will not hold this morning against you. Goodnight." Without waiting for another word from his roommate, he darted pasted him and grabbed his keys from the bowl then slipped out of the door. He whirled around to head down the steps and slammed straight into a soft body.

"Shit, my toe! Ow, Sheldon!" Penny howled, hopping on one of her feet while she grasped the other with her hand. "Where the hell is the fire?"

"Penny," Sheldon breathed. "I'm sorry, I didn't see you there. I felt my heel come into contact with your metatarsals, are they broken?"

"No," she grumbled, rubbing her foot tenderly as she leaned up against the wall near the broken elevator. "Where are you going that you're in such a hurry?" Her painful grimace softened as her eyes swept over Sheldon's body. "And dressed like that?"

"I have a meeting," he said quickly. His previously well-prepared evening was slowly becoming a nightmare. "Sorry about your foot, Penny. I'll try to watch where I'm going from now on. Have a good evening."

"Wait," she called, as he made it halfway down the flight of stairs. He stopped and cringed before slowly looking over his shoulder, wishing for a brain aneurysm to take him quickly. But when he met eyes with Penny and saw her curious face replaced by a soft, shy grin that reminded him of a young school girl with a crush, he felt his body relax slightly. She was wearing her Cheesecake Factory uniform just like he had seen her in this morning, and she was obviously just returning from work. But even though she looked a little worn around the edges from having spent all day on her feet, Sheldon couldn't help but notice how attractive the curve of her neck was from the angle where he stood beneath her.

"Are we still on for Saturday?" Her voice was high, hopeful. And it dragged Sheldon down from his reverie. Of course—Saturday. The precise reason he was trying to get to Katie now as to squelch any urges that would be otherwise unloaded on Penny, but by some act of a god he did not believe in, any and all stops were being pulled to keep him from getting there.

"Yes," he answered shortly. "Goodnight." With that, he spun around and fled, not giving her the chance to say anything else.

* * *

"Want to switch positions?" Katie suggested.

"This is the only position I'm comfortable with," Sheldon grunted in irritation. He was propped up between Katie's legs, one hand on either side of her head. He had not been able to form a full erection for the last twenty minutes. He was beyond humiliated, but too proud to quit. It was the first time either of them had spoken since they got naked and crawled in bed together.

"Sheldon," she whispered and waited until he looked down to meet her eyes. Well, the slits in the mask where her eyes should be. Tonight, her hair was styled differently; it was long and brown, the result of extensions he was sure, and fell like a waterfall down her shoulders. He was pleased with the aesthetics of watching it sashay across her naked back as she removed her clothes. But once it was time to perform, he assumed the position and was unable to come to attention.

"Yes?" he grunted again. His palms were sweating and he felt clammy all over.

"You are so sexy."

"I'm sorry?" he asked, his face twisting into a perplexed expression.

Her full, pink lips stretched into a Cheshire grin beneath the eye mask. "You are. Your body is perfect. Why are you afraid to use it?"

"With all due respect, Katie," Sheldon started as he pulled back and sat on his haunches, grabbing the black satin sheet around his back to cover himself. "I did not come here to be questioned or to even talk more than is necessary."

He saw Katie roll out from under him and he yanked the useless condom off of his limp member, biting his lip. She pushed herself off of the bed and walked away, disappearing from his view. He faced the headboard, studying its leather patterns. He blamed Leonard with his infuriating accusations, and Penny for looking so radiant on the stairs. It was weighing heavily on his mind, rendering him unable to concentrate on anything else. For God's sake, he was only here to release his frustrations, not build upon them. After a moment of defeated silence, he spoke. "I suppose I will go now."

As he removed the sheet from around his body, he shifted his leg to lead him off the mattress but suddenly felt two small hands on his back grab hold of his shoulders and prevented him from moving. He craned his neck to look behind him when he felt Katie's soft, naked body press itself flush against his own bare back.

"Don't move," she ordered. His heart beat sped up as her sure fingers trickled down his shoulder blades, scraping the skin with her short, manicured nails before they traveled around his circumference, meeting at his ribs. "You're so tense. You've had a hard day."

Sheldon froze at the feel of her hardened nipples against his back and merely nodded in acknowledgement of her observation. He looked down as one of her hands traveled up to his left pectoral muscle and casually ran her fingers along his nipple, while the other hand reached out and rubbed up and down his right forearm. He closed his eyes as she pinched at his nipple with one hand and with the other, intertwined her fingers with his.

"What are you doing?" he asked weakly as the hand that held his fingers suddenly moved up and wrapped around his wrist, bringing his arm up and in front of him. He gulped when his own hand, controlled by Katie's, brushed against his low-hanging cock.

"Hold yourself," she commanded, brushing him against himself again. He hesitated for only a moment before he followed her orders, holding himself in his trembling fingers. "Close your fist," she whispered against his shoulders, sealing her sentence with a wet kiss along his skin.

Sheldon's knees were shaking as he looked straight ahead to study the headboard again and slowly closed his fingers around himself, the sensation of Katie's lips on his back springing life into his member.

"Good," she purred before running her tongue across his left shoulder blade and rested it on the right one. All the while, she kept one hand on his wrist to control the movement as Sheldon began to pump himself. Her other hand teased his erect nipple. "How do you feel?"

"I don't feel anything," he said assertively, more so to convince himself than Katie.

"No, you misunderstood me. How do you _feel_?"

Sheldon gasped when the hand on his nipple quickly fell and rubbed around his back until it met his ass. She cupped it firmly before reaching under him and rubbed his testicles from between his legs. He suddenly became very aware of the quickly hardening flesh in his hand.

"I feel smooth and hard," he said gruffly, his senses working overtime to supply his brain with enough adjectives. "I feel thick and strong."

"Yeah, you do," Katie groaned lightly. Then she let go of her hold on his wrist and soon Sheldon was jerking off on his own. She brought her free hand around to rake her nails across his flat abdomen while the other continued to cradle his balls tenderly. He thrust his hips instinctively into his fist as his pumping quickened in pace. While his neck rolled back, his eyes closed and he felt the stress from today's social interactions roll off of his back like water droplets from a shower head.

"I feel so good," he whispered harshly.

"You do," Katie replied, her voice low and distant. "You are so sexy, Sheldon. Any woman would want to fuck you."

"Yes," he hissed, his small lisp prominent as his head fell down until his chin touched his chest. He was close.

"And you could fuck any woman you want." Katie continued to egg him on, whispering into the skin on his arms and shoulders while she rubbed his balls firmly, keeping tempo with his strokes. "You can fuck Penny."

His eyes flew open at the sound of her name and his breath kicked up a notch as the words spoken from behind him resonated deep into his core. Sheldon realized he had said Penny's name in every encounter that he had with Katie, and was none too surprised that she would remember it now, now that he was so close. He played along, the feel of his friend's name leaving his lips birthing tingles down his spine. "Penny," he whimpered, pumping even harder, his grip around his cock tightening.

"Fuck Penny harder," Katie murmured. "Fuck her, Sheldon."

"Penny, Penny-" His moans bled freely into whines as his white hot release shot out of him, staining the sheets beneath him and dripped down his still moving fist. "Shit," he cursed, unable to help himself as the remnants of the vision of Penny faded. He folded over, landing on his side, careful to avoid touching his fluids and looked up, expecting to see Katie, but she was nowhere to be found. After a few seconds of blinking profusely to focus on his surroundings and labored breaths, he propped himself up on his elbows.

"Katie?" he called out timidly. There was no answer. He sat up straight and looked around the dimly lit room, about to call out for her again until he looked down at the foot of the bed and saw that she had placed her mask on top of the covers.

When she didn't return 15 minutes later, Sheldon slowly got dressed and left.

* * *

It wasn't when Penny's boss sent her home early for not looking "busy enough" during her shift tending at the bar, thus docking half of her day's pay. And it wasn't when her debit card was declined at the corner store when she was buying Redvines and Diet Coke, much to the amusement of the teenagers in line behind her.

"_I have money, it's just got to be the magnetic strip or something!" _she had told the clerk, who just shook his head, clearly judging her for not being able to afford charging $6.

It wasn't even the flat tire that she found she had when she tried to leave the corner store and the subsequent two hour wait for roadside assistance to show up and help her. It was when Penny finally walked into her apartment after her terrible Saturday evening, barely making it in time to shower and get ready for her movie night with Sheldon, that she realized she was terribly alone. And this epiphany could not have come at a better time, than now.

"Oh, hi, Penny," Leonard said with a hint of discomfort. He crudely yanked his hand out of the bottom of Alex's blouse that had ridden up and exposed her gutsy lotus blossom tattooed on the length of her ribs. He stepped away from where he had his girlfriend pressed against the broken elevator door; Penny had clearly interrupted some public hanky panky.

"Wow, guess you guys couldn't make it four flights, huh?" she snapped, then immediately pulled the reins on her temper. The last thing she wanted was to lose her shit in front of her ex. She had been beaten down all day and there was no way in hell she was going to lose her dignity in front of Leonard tonight.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly while Alex stared at her with the same, pathetic, deer-in-the-headlights look she always wore.

"Whatever, it's a free country," she muttered dismissively and turned to the stairs. She heard the happy couple shuffle behind her, careful not to walk too fast that they may get too close. Every step was a chore for Penny. One step, she wanted to turn around and slap Leonard's stupid glasses off of his face. Second step, she wanted to spit some made up, voodoo-sounding words at Alex and give the poor girl a heart attack, just for Penny's own amusement. Third step, she wanted to break down and sob.

After what seemed like hours of extremely awkward silence later, the trio had finally made it to the fourth floor.

"Have a good night, Penny," Leonard called out dumbly, as if they were old chums.

"Yeah," she grunted, not bothering to turn around. It was all she could do not to let a tear fall before she was finally inside her apartment, but once she was alone, it started to rain.

Thirty minutes and a quick shower later, Penny had changed three times before she finally settled on a pair of skinny jeans and black sleeveless shirt with red and white floral print. She left her hair down and wavy and stared thoughtfully at herself in the mirror.

She was good-looking enough. She was a hard worker and self-efficient. But she was also very alone.

She sat on her mattress and a few more tears slipped out of her closed eyelids. Just as she was about to grab her cell phone and regretfully cancel her plans with Sheldon, the knocking on the door began.

_Knock – Knock – Knock – _"Penny."

She looked at her digital alarm clock. "9PM. Right on time, Moonpie."

_Knock – Knock – Knock – _"Penny."

She wondered if she didn't answer the door, would Sheldon use his emergency key to enter the apartment to make sure she was alive? Or would he shrug his broad shoulders and take her absence as an opportunity to enjoy movie night alone on his own couch?

_Knock – Knock – Knock – _"Penny?"

* * *

Sheldon was in no mood for movie night with Penny by the time he was in the laundry room pre-soaking his whites.

Though conditions in his apartment had improved slightly since his and Leonard's talk five days ago, the air was still slightly tense. Instead of Alex staying overnight, Leonard had taken to having her over every waking minute of every day. When Sheldon tried to complain, he shook his head and pointed out that the amendment in the Roommate Agreement only stated that she could not stay the night and nothing about how much time she could spend there before he sent her home. And that Sheldon couldn't have it both ways.

Today, Saturday, was the first day that Sheldon couldn't avoid the couple for 9 hours at work. He had resorted to locking himself in his room for the most of the afternoon to avoid their disgusting displays of affection in the living room. He was truly in hell.

The night prior he was supposed to see Katie, but he cancelled at the last minute, his mind still reeling from their last encounter. The woman had purposely made him think of Penny while he touched himself, an act he could not get out of his mind. He went to her for a reason; to cease his carnal thoughts of his neighbor. But now, she was all he could think about. It was like Katie had opened a flood gate and all of his deeper, darker fantasies of rocking Penny against him as he used his hand in place of her body at night when he was alone came tumbling towards him in waves.

How could he innocently sit on a couch with Penny when the entire time he would think about putting his hands on her? If she knew the thoughts going through his mind, she would surely go, as she so liked to state, _junior rodeo_ on him. He had seen Penny attack a man's genitalia before and though it was for good cause, it was an excruciating thought when he realized she would perform the very same maneuver on him if he could not keep his hands to himself.

As soon as his laundry was dried and folded then dispersed in their proper places in his closet and dresser, Sheldon had resolved to cancel movie night in person. He would fake illness or claim he had a deadline at work, something short and simple but yet nothing Penny could refute. His right eye twitched at the prospect of having to lie, but he stifled his nervous system and tried to tell himself this lie was for everyone's benefit. Soon, he found himself at Penny's door and he looked down to smooth his Flash shirt over his navy blue slacks. Then he steeled his face and raised his fist to knock. On the third rep, he listened for Penny's approach

Twelve seconds later, she still had not opened the door. He raised his eyebrow in befuddlement then glanced down at his wrist watch and saw that it was exactly nine o'clock, their designated meeting time. Worry tightened his chest and he raised his fist to knock again but stopped short when he heard the bolt turn and Penny finally opened the door.

"Hey, Sheldon."

"Hello, Penny," he replied with his eyes on the ground. He opened his mouth to say more until his gaze traveled up and he got an eyeful of her. Her sleeveless blouse revealed her toned arms and he noticed the way the curls of her mane tickled the skin there. Then his eyes flitted to her face and what he saw both weakened his knees and concerned him at once. Sheldon had not been able to see her at all in the last few days on account of her night classes and work schedule, so her appearance after five days was suddenly startling. Coupled with the fact at her nose was slightly red and her eyes were puffy, he found himself marveling at her very vulnerable appearance. He had to stop himself from reaching out and putting his arms around her.

"Ready to watch a movie?" she asked with a weak smile.

All the excuses he had made before coming over suddenly packed up shop and left him in the dust. For the first time in a very long time (the morning of March 22, 2010 when Penny and Leonard had showed him the Youtube video of him dropping his trousers on stage while drunkenly accepting the coveted Chancellor's Award for Science), Sheldon was speechless. It took a few moments for him to find the words, but when he did, they came out in an ineloquent mess.

"No movie, brought, did." He coughed into his fist as Penny's eyes narrowed in amusement and confusion. "I did not bring a movie with me."

She shrugged. "I didn't bring Redvines. Come on in anyway." She moved out the way and waited for Sheldon to join her inside. His mind blared an alarm, attempting to stop him from entering the room, but his feet had their own plan as they shuffled in and walked to her couch. He brought his hands around and clasped them together in front of him as he waited for Penny to speak again.

"Want some wine?" she called from the kitchen. "You know what? Never mind. This is a non-optional social convention. I've had a shitty day and I'm going to drink wine with my best friend. I'll get you a glass."

Sheldon waited until she met his eyes before giving her a disapproving glare, but did not protest. A few moments later, Penny had the stems of two wineglasses in one hand and a bottle of red wine in the other. She met him in the center of the living room and glanced at the couch.

"Have a seat," she insisted with a smile.

"Alright," he conceded and they sat on the cushions directly next to each other. Facing the coffee table, Sheldon watched her set up the glasses and pour the already opened bottle into both of them. He was very aware of her slender knee and thigh pressed unabashed against his. He kept his hands together and waited patiently for his glass. When he saw that Penny was still pouring even as the liquid quickly approached the brim, he held his hand out and gently placed it on her wrist. "That will certainly do, Penny."

"Lightweight," she muttered but tilted the bottle upward. Then she filled hers and put the bottle down before reaching for her glass. "What shall we toast to?"

"You really want to toast after an unsuccessful day?" Sheldon asked.

"Huh?"

"You said you had a bad day."

"No," Penny corrected him after she took a big gulp of wine. "I said I had a _shitty _day." She leaned back and bit her lower lip and Sheldon was sure he saw her eyes glistening as though she was on the verge of tears. He squirmed, not so much out of discomfort at the sight of emotions like usual, but how at this new angle, he saw her shirt ride up slightly, exposing a sliver of skin right where her shirt and the waistline of her jeans met. He struggled to stay focused and looked up at her face.

"I don't want to talk about it, though. Can we just drink?" she asked.

Before Sheldon could answer, she suddenly sat up straight and slammed her glass on the coffee table with a loud _clang_ that rattled his nerves.

"I'm sorry, Sheldon," she breathed before she stood up quickly. He watched with wide eyes as she bolted out of the living room and left him alone on her couch, banging her bedroom door shut behind her. He fought a quick-lived internal battle of deciding whether or not he should take this opportunity to leave or go after her. He chewed on his bottom lip and stared down at the two wine glasses on the coffee table. Her glass had a faint outline of pink lip gloss on the brim.

* * *

Penny lied face down in bed as she called herself every name in the book. Coward. Cry baby. Horrible friend to have left Sheldon alone on her couch. Stupid idiot for letting the sight of Leonard passionately kissing Alex ruin her night.

Then, three knocks and her name.

She sat up and stared at her bedroom door through tears, watching Sheldon's shadow fill the foggy glass partition. She waited for him to complete his triad round of knocking before she sighed and asked him to just go home.

"But, it's movie night," he said.

"You didn't bring a movie, sweetie," she muttered, wiping at her eyes with the back of her wrist. She had so been looking forward to tonight. Why did she have to be such a hormonal woman?

"We can watch one of your movies," he said unhappily. Penny smiled at the sound of his resigned voice. Sheldon was willing to sacrifice an evening of Star Trek for one of her chick flicks. Her eyebrows furrowed together; why wasn't he running for the hills at the prospect of a weepy Penny?

"Sheldon, I'd rather you not see me like this," she answered honestly. "I've just had a terrible day and having you watch me cry won't make it any better."

"Very well," he said swiftly. A second later, she heard her front door close and then she was alone. She laid her head down on her pillow, suddenly off put by his quick dismissal.

"You did practically throw the guy out of your apartment, Penny," she chastised herself. Why did she think Sheldon would make an exception to his rule of no tolerating extreme displays of female emotion? A few more tears slipped out as she realized that a small part of her wished Sheldon would have broken the rule for her.

A buzzing on her nightstand distracted her and she flopped on her back, stretching her arm out to grab her cell phone. She hovered her thumb over the "Ignore" button but stopped when a familiar face appeared on her screen. An uncertain grin spread over her face as she pressed "Answer" and pushed the phone to her ear.

"Sheldon?"

* * *

"Did you know that when Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone, he proposed answering it with '_Ahoy_'?"

He was lying flat on his back in the comfort of his bedroom, slightly more relaxed now that he wasn't so close to Penny, but extremely satisfied that he could still hear her voice.

"Ahoy?"

"Yes," he said with a nod, even though she couldn't see him. "I like answering my phone like that now. You should do it, too."

"I guess I could give it a try," she said, her voice unsure. "Sheldon, is there something you called for?"

"Well," he began, resting his free hand on his stomach. "You said that _watching_ you cry would not make you feel any better. But you didn't mention anything about _hearing _you."

"You really want to sit on the phone and listen to me cry?"

"I don't _want_ to, no," he admitted, staring up at his ceiling. "But I was looking forward to spending this evening with you. Now that your concern with our proximity is out of the equation, we can proceed with conversation as though we were still sitting together on your couch, as we originally planned."

"You…you were looking forward to tonight?"

He sighed. "Yes, Penny. Now, I could go to the living room and turn on a movie then give you the play by play, thereby simulating the real experience of movie night via cellular phone, or we could agree on a subject that both of us find acceptable and converse."

"I pick the second option."

"Very well, you begin."

Sheldon heard Penny giggle softly and his stomach flipped. He felt a smile form on his lips.

"Okay. So, if you're not in the living room already, does that mean you're in your bedroom?"

"That is correct," he answered.

"Are you…lying on your bed right now?"

He hesitated for a second as he tried to process the sudden low register of her voice. "Um, yes. I am."

"I'm in my bed, too."

"Okay," he said dully, not understanding the reasoning behind revealing their locations to each other.

"You know what that means?" When he was quiet, she continued. "Well, if our proximity is out of the equation, like you said," she mumbled slowly, as if she were trying to figure out a puzzle. "And we are to continue on the phone as if we're still right by each other…if you're in your bed, and I'm in mine, that means…"

Sheldon's grin spread across his face and he felt a flutter caress the inside of his lower abdomen as he spoke. "It means that we're in bed together."


	7. Seven

**A/N: Hold on to something. Here we go. ;]**

* * *

"_It means that we're in bed together." _

Penny shivered as Sheldon's voice descended a register. She licked her lips and fell slowly on her back, the cool sheets caressing the skin of her bare arms.

"Yeah," she chuckled. "I guess we are. And you didn't even have to buy me dinner first." She shivered again when Sheldon breathed a tiny, wheezy laugh. Relief flooded her; she was afraid of making Sheldon uncomfortable in fear that he would hang up with her. Seeing his face on her phone after she had kicked him out of her apartment had ignited something in her. She felt like a young girl of 16 again, talking quietly on the phone with a boy so that she didn't wake her parents. He spoke sweetly to her, just as quiet, like maybe he was afraid of waking his parents, too. She anchored herself to the sound of his voice.

"No," he said. "I suppose I didn't." It was quiet for a moment before Sheldon spoke again. "Penny?"

"Yes?"

She heard him make a noise that sounded like he was swallowing. "Are your lights in your bedroom on or off?"

She smirked then reached over with her free hand and switched off the bedside lamp. Since there were windows in her room, everything went pitch black. With a deep breath, she settled on her back again, letting her eyes adjust to the dark. "They're off."

"Mine are, too."

"Interesting," she murmured, grinning from ear to ear. Was Sheldon Cooper _flirting_ with her? Without much thought, one of her hands traveled down her rib cage then rested on her abdomen. Her fingers tapped the exposed skin of her hips, her shirt having ridden up slightly when she laid down. As they sat there in silence, she tried to imagine what he looked like on his narrow bed, lying in the dark and talking to her. Immediately, her mind materialized an image of his long, thick fingers.

"Sheldon?"

"Yes?" he asked. She scrunched her nose at how cute his subtle lisp sounded right in her ear.

"Is your hand on your stomach?" she whispered.

"Yes."

A small quake erupted deep inside of her, causing bite her lower lip. Her fingers tapped her exposed skin again, dormant, waiting for her instruction.

"My hand is on my stomach, too," she told him softly. Sheldon shuddered a breath and Penny's toes on her bare feet spread at the sound. They sat in a comfortable lull of silence, Penny listening to his even breathing. She was about to say something else when she heard him begin.

"Do you still feel sad, Penny?"

"No," she answered honestly, blinking her eyes. "Thanks to you."

"Me?"

"Yes," she said with a nod. Down below, her fingers finally found a task. They hooked around the button on her fly and slowly unzipped her jeans. "I feel much better, just listening to your voice."

"Penny," Sheldon said, his voice suddenly gruff and urgent. She waited until she had shimmied out of her jeans and kicked them off of the bed before answering.

"Yeah?"

"I hear rustling on your end of the line. What are you doing?"

Her eyes flew open and she studied the outline of her closet in front of her, a dark rectangle in the center of her wall. Penny felt as though she should lie—tell Sheldon she just dropped the phone or that she was getting under the covers because she was cold. She could lie, but it felt wrong. Her entire day had been full of wrongs, from the flat tire to the sight of her ex and his girlfriend when she got home. Penny was ready to feel right. So she closed her eyes and the peculiar sensations that she had been feeling all week, namely at night when she thought of Sheldon and touched herself, resurfaced. She took a deep breath and told him the truth.

"I am taking off my clothes." She put the phone down without waiting for him to answer, sat up straight, and lifted her shirt off of her body in one quick motion. Then she unsnapped her bra and let it slide off of her arms. The coolness of the room immediately enveloped her bare breasts, causing the nipples to stiffen and rise at an alarming rate. Then she lied back down, her panties the only barrier between her and her sheets, and picked up the phone, placing it back on her ear. She listened, but heard nothing. "Are you still there?"

She heard a loud _clang_ accompanied by a frustrated hiss. "Darn!"

She stifled a giggle as she heard Sheldon struggle with his phone before he finally breathed into the mouthpiece. "I'm here. Sorry, I dropped the phone."

"Why did you drop your phone?" Penny spurred him, knowing that her boldness probably caused him to have a mini-heart attack. The thought of him in his bed, his eyes wide open in shock, yet his hand on his stomach, excited her. Soon, her panties were around her ankles and she flicked her foot, kicking them to the ground. She wanted to get a rise out of him. But she waited for him to chastise her, demand she stop acting like a heathen, hang up on her or at least threaten to.

Penny was not prepared for what he actually said.

"Because I was taking my clothes off, too."

* * *

Sheldon's skin was on fire. The flames licked him and made him want to cry out. Then he realized it was just the roasting sensation of cloth on his body. The cotton of his shirt and pants were suffocating him and the burn intensified with every noise Penny made on her end of the line.

"I hear rustling on your end of the line," he told her, his voice suspicious. "What are you doing?"

"I am taking my clothes off."

His thighs suddenly clenched together and his ear perked up, unsure if he had heard her correctly. But then he heard a series of clicks and more rustling, and he knew without a shadow of doubt that Penny was disrobing. Not stopping to process another thought, he placed his phone on the bed beside him and went immediately for his fly. In seconds, his pants were tossed into the hamper across the room. His shirts were halfway off of his body when he fell back and leaned on his elbow as one of his arms was stuck in the long sleeved thermal. He struggled and finally broke free but sent his phone tumbling to the ground in the process.

"Darn!" He reached down to grab it and checked the screen to make sure Penny was still on the line before he put it to his ear. He heard her ask if he was still there.

"I'm here," he said, slightly breathless from his shirt mishap. "Sorry, I dropped the phone."

Her breathy laugh set fire to his skin once again and looked down uneasily at the last article of clothing attached to his body; his quickly tightening pair of briefs. He closed his eyes as she spoke again.

"Why did you drop your phone?" Her tone was teasing and he could nearly hear the smile she most certainly had on her face.

"Because I was taking my clothes off, too." Sheldon wondered if he was making a mistake as he reached down and pulled at the elastic of his underwear, the air touching his semi-hard penis. This thought was short lived when he heard Penny draw in a sharp breath. He pushed the briefs down all the way, bending his knees and lifting his ass to fully free himself, then kicked them off the bed.

"Have you…" she began before pausing and he tilted his head up to stare at the ceiling. He needed to hear her voice again, craved it so much that he felt like the air wouldn't fill his lungs again until he heard it. "Have you ever done this before?"

"Done what?" he asked.

He was being mildly coy; he knew that she was asking if he had ever spoken on the phone with a woman before in the nude, which of course, he had not. But as he reached down and his hand disappeared from view, clutching his thick skin between his fingers, he suddenly wanted to tell her that yes, he had touched himself to the imagined vision of her body next to his.

"Sheldon," she said firmly. The sound of her assertive tone brought him out of his reverie and his hand detached from his erection. He felt it wobble and brush against his thigh. His eyes flew open as she continued. "Have you ever had phone sex before?"

"No, Penny," he whispered. "I haven't." His breathing kicking up a notch. Were they going to engage in the act of 'phone sex' right now? Or had she changed her mind? He suddenly longed for his laptop to quickly run a Google search on the act right now. He would be flying by the seat of his pants, so to speak, if Penny were to proceed. Half of Sheldon hoped she wouldn't. He felt himself regressing even further away from his goal. He was not supposed to want Penny so badly. He was supposed to be suppressing these urges, unleashing them on Katie, a virtual stranger, per their arrangement.

What happened to anonymity?

This was wrong. It could get messy, he knew. But then he heard Penny sigh. Not the usual, _Oh, that crazy whack-a-doodle_ sigh reserved for him after he tried explaining a scientific principle to her. Not the type of sigh that she emitted when she was sad, pensive, angry or unsure. Over the last six years, Sheldon had thought he had heard every type of sigh Penny could make, until this one.

"I'm touching myself right now, Sheldon," she said one in breathy exhale. And then he sighed, too.

* * *

There was no going back, she realized as she stuttered her next question.

"Sheldon, have you ever had phone sex before?"

"No, Penny. I haven't." He sounded so close that she could practically feel his warm breath washing over her. She arched her back, wincing at the imagined contact. Her hand with the cell phone grabbed it tighter, so tight her knuckles paled. Her free hand clenched and twisted at the sheets beside her. Her ripening center was calling out to her, wanting to be caressed with every deep sound Sheldon made.

There was no going back, but Penny wasn't looking back anymore.

"I'm touching myself right now, Sheldon." And she made it so, plunging her middle finger between her moist folds. Immediately her finger was suctioned by her center as welcomed contact. Her index finger flicked her clit and she parted her mouth, sighing happily in sync with the nerve endings on her sensitive bud. "Touch yourself, too."

"I am," he replied with a grunt, and Penny nearly purred at the sound. "What does it feel like, Penny?"

She pushed her head back into her pillow, her wavy tendrils of hair falling on her face as she smiled. "It feels warm and wet. So wet." She emitted a guttural noise, a cluck in her throat as she added her ring finger into her hole. "How does it feel, Sheldon?"

"Penny, I'm so hard it hurts." His voice was soft and thin, almost as though it was hard for him to breathe.

"I'll take care of that," she vowed. "Pretend it's my hand gripping you, rubbing up and down slowly." He gasped and she grinned, keeping her eyes closed so that she could see him in her mind better. She imagined his strong, lengthy thighs slightly open to allow for his length as he touched himself.

"Penny…"

"I'm still rubbing you, and I go faster," she said. "Stroke your cock faster, Sheldon."

He moaned in reply, seemingly following her order. "How many fingers do you have inside of you right now?"

She shivered. "Two."

"Add another," he growled. She immediately slipped in her pinky finger and let out a throaty groan. "Pretend it's me, Penny."

"Sheldon, I always pretend it's you." Penny was sure she had imagined saying this, but felt her lips move and realized she truly did admit it. But there was no time to take it back; she was getting close.

"Oh, Penny," Sheldon whined. She listened closely and heard the unmistakable sound of flesh slapping flesh over his labored breathing. "Penny, I think about you, too…"

"Do you come when you think about me?"

"Yes," he lisped. "I'm gonna…I'm gonna come right now."

The southern twang of his deep voice reappeared and Penny felt the tightness deep in her loins spiral out of control. "Sheldon, I'm almost there."

"Penny," he panted, the pounding on his end going faster, filling her ears. "Come for me."

Her eyes flew open as the familiar demand from her fantasies involving Sheldon filled her ears. "Oh, oh God!" With the heel of her hand, she put pressure on her clit, her fingers moving in and out of her at a quickened pace. Just as the fluttering of her walls pushed her over the edge, she wedged the phone between her ear and shoulder and brought her newly free hand to her breasts, pinching at her left nipple. Her orgasm swept over her, leaving no inch of skin untouched.

"I'm coming!" Sheldon declared into her ear. She moaned in time with him, the sound of his pleasure causing another wave of tremors to rock her from head to toe. The slapping noises ceased on his end and were replaced by his tiny cries of satisfaction.

"Sheldon, oh my God!"

Their breaths clashed as they both struggled to regulate air intake. Penny's fingers slipped out of her and rested on her thigh, while her other hand wiped the sweat from her brow before clutching the phone again. The piece of metal felt hot, but was not as warm as her body temperature. When she finally found the strength to speak again, she asked Sheldon if he was okay. When he didn't speak, she listened for a few moments, his breath still erratic.

"Penny," he finally said. "I'm so sorry."

* * *

He longed for the wet wipes on his nightstand to clean off the mess he had made on his stomach and hand. But the trembling resulting from his powerful orgasm kept him rooted, flat on his back. He was afraid to move, afraid the pure euphoria would cease. Because once it was gone, it would just be him and Penny and reality again.

What had he done?

After she called his name, he winced and licked his lips. "Penny," he began. "I'm so sorry." He kept his eyes closed tight, not ready to face actuality. Her sweet breath in his ear stopped for a moment and he waited for her to speak.

"Sorry? For what?" She sounded confused. "That was _incredible._"

"But…" His eyes finally inched open, his sight blurry and his temples sweaty. "We've crossed a line, have we not?"

"Oh, sweetie," she said. He heard her move around a little and longed to see the curves of her body. He imagined her getting comfortable beneath her sheets. "I don't know what line you think we've crossed, but I don't regret this for one second."

He blinked a few times, letting his room come into focus. The street light from outside poured in from his open curtains and washed the furniture and posters on his wall in a hazy blue. "But, we're friends. Friends don't do this." He bit his lip before he could say another word. It didn't feel right calling Penny his friend. It didn't feel like _enough_.

"Sheldon, we can still be friends after this." Penny hesitated and he heard her draw in a deep breath. "I'm sorry if I violated you and our friendship. But I meant what I said a few minutes ago."

He had heard her say a lot of things a few minutes ago. He sifted through his short-term memory and was suddenly smacked right in the jaw with realization. She had said that she _always pretended it was me_. To be sure, he asked her to clarify.

"I have been thinking about you lately, Sheldon," she admitted, her voice closer to the phone, caressing his ear drums. "I know it might be wrong, but I've thought about you a lot. In bed. While touching myself."

He shook his head in protest, unwilling to hear anymore.

"This was not in my plans," he whispered so low that Penny didn't hear him.

"What?"

"Penny, I'm sorry. We shouldn't have done this. I…I have to go."

"Sheldon," her voice broke, along with a little piece of him. "Don't beat yourself up over this, okay? Look, this was my fault. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything."

"No," he said firmly. "It wasn't your fault, Penny. Please, can we speak at a later time?"

She sighed. He recognized this sound; disappointed.

"Sure, that's fine. Goodnight, Sheldon." Her dissatisfaction pecked at his resolve. He wanted to reach out to her, run across the hall and show her just how much he wanted her, too. But because of this very craving, he was terrified.

"Goodnight, Penny." He swiped at his screen with his thumb, ending the call. "What have I done?" he asked the walls of his room that watched him, accusing.

* * *

Penny rolled over in her bed, her iPhone in one hand, the other hand tucked between her legs. She felt a prickling sensation behind her eyeballs as she stared at her closed bedroom door. Her mind was blank for a long time, a period of minutes she could not have kept track of, when the small beep from her cell phone alerting her of a low battery interrupted her thoughts. She stared at the phone, realizing what had just happened, and she tossed it towards her wall. It flew into her open closet, landing on the floor with a _thud_. The prickling sensation flowed over the brim of her eyes and the tears followed quickly after.

Sheldon had touched her tonight. Perhaps not with his hands, but he had. And in this realization came further recognition of what she had been feeling for the last week, perhaps maybe longer.

"_So you're like one of those, beautiful mind, genius guys."_

"_Yeah." _

Was there ever a time that she didn't feel this?

"_Never let it be said that Sheldon Lee Cooper ignored the pleas of a damsel in distress."_

"_No one's saying that, let's go." _

Was there ever a time that Sheldon had not been in her mind, wondering if he was okay, wondering what he was doing?

_He grinned over his magazine at her and she returned the smile with a tilt of her head. _

"_Thanks for letting me stay over here while Leonard Skypes with his girlfriend." _

"_Oh, it's no problem! It's actually kinda nice; you reading, me reading. We're like an old married couple." _

Was there ever a time that Sheldon wasn't there for Penny, too?

"_Why two strikes?" she asked through her tears. He explained how Leonard sullied his reputation by sleeping with Alex, then he leaned into her, making sure she looked into his eyes as he spoke again. _

"_And the other is for hurting you." _

Penny continued to let the tears stream over her face and she wrapped herself in her sheet. She thought she had been releasing some pent up energy, having a little bit of fun with Sheldon, but she couldn't have been more wrong. She wanted Sheldon, cared for him, so much it physically ached. "Oh, Penny," she said softly, shaking her head at herself.

"_I'm right across the hall if you need me_."

She breathed out a small laugh, but there was nothing funny about falling for your best friend when he could never feel the same way about you.

* * *

Sheldon avoided leaving his room all day Sunday unless he needed to void his bladder or was in search of sustenance in the kitchen. He was relieved to see that Leonard and Alex were gone, but still didn't want to be caught in the living room to see their faces in case they were to come home. His facial expression was permanently caught in between agony and bewilderment, the phone session with Penny weighing heavily on his mind.

He felt as though he were hit by the force of a Mack truck every time his imagination wandered, memories of Penny's naked body that he had seen before when she fell and dislocated her arm popping out at him along with vividly fresh thoughts of their conversation in bed last night. It wasn't hard for him to imagine her lying on her bed, touching herself as she spoke to him, and for this he felt torn between ecstasy and shame. She didn't know of the leaps and bounds of where his eidetic memory took him.

At the same time, her confession that she had thought of him before, touched herself before, rocked him. She had never shown interest in him before in a carnal way, he was sure of it. When had this begun?

_It didn't matter_, he assured himself. _This can never happen again._

Not just for the sake of their social group (he was sure he would never hear the end of Leonard's belly-aching if he were to know what had transpired between his roommate and ex-girlfriend), but also for Sheldon's sanity. He could _not _have feelings for Penny. He had almost made this mistake with Amy, and he barely got through that unscathed.

With a heavy heart, he realized anything he might have felt for Amy Farrah Fowler paled in stark comparison for his desire and overall fondness for Penny, and this, like most of his Penny-fueled thoughts these days, horrified him. He couldn't _feel_ for her. She couldn't keep controlling him like this. Sheldon Cooper needed to be in control.

With this thought in mind, he marched out of his room and stalked straight over to his desk in the living room. His hands were trembling as he reached inside his file cabinet and pulled out Katie's card. He memorized the address printed on the front and had no need to reference it any longer, but he couldn't bring himself to throw it away. Every time he touched it, it was a reminder that he was in control of his own body. That he could relieve himself, indulge in his desires, and not hurt Penny in the process.

He grabbed his windbreaker and headed to the door, one destination in mind, the address in his hand. But then he abruptly stopped cold as a rogue memory of the first time he ever saw Penny splashed him like a cold bucket of water.

"_New neighbor?" Leonard asked. _

"_Evidently," Sheldon replied. He looked over his short friend's head of curly hair and zoned in on the long legs of a blonde siren. _

"_Significant improvement over the old neighbor," his dense friend observed, interrupting his thoughts._

"_Two hundred pound transvestite with a skin condition, yes she is." Then she looked up and caught Sheldon's eye and his heart skipped a beat. But for the first time ever, he wasn't convinced that it was a murmur or arrhythmia that needed medical attention. It was _that_ smile. _

"_Oh, hi!" she greeted._

Sheldon withdrew from the memory and shook his head quickly, the fog of her vanilla-oil scent surrounding him. He took a few steps back until he was at his desk again, the whole time he stared at his closed door. After a few moments, he looked at Katie's card in his hand. Without hesitation, he ripped it in two and walked over to the garbage can to dispose of it.

* * *

In the next few days that followed Saturday night, Penny's food had lost taste and the colors around her seemed dull.

She ignored attempted contact from her friends, especially Amy's frantic texts and calls. But on Tuesday evening when she didn't show up to her shift at the Cheesecake Factory, Amy messaged that she was on her way to the apartment to check on her. Penny picked up her phone and dialed Amy's number right away, determined to catch her before she got in the car and headed over.

"Amy!" she did her best to keep her voice peppy and upbeat after Amy answered on the first ring. "What's going on?"

"Penny," she breathed in relief. "You haven't answered me or Bernadette's calls these last couple days. And we went to go see you at work tonight. Why weren't you there?"

"Oh, I was scheduled off today," Penny lied. She had faked sick earlier on purpose and called in. She was afraid that Sheldon would have the audacity to show his face at his regular table, demanding she serve him his stupid cheeseburger. She wouldn't have been able to keep it together if he could go on normally, acting as though nothing had happened. She already had to deal with that bullshit from Leonard—she couldn't handle it from Sheldon, too.

Plus, there was the shame. The hurt that was its companion. Three days and no calls, no texts. No _knock – knock – knock _'Penny's.

"Oh," Amy said, interrupting Penny's self-pitying thoughts. She did not sound convinced. "Is everything okay, Bestie?"

"Sure," she answered brightly. "Sorry I've been so distant. My college algebra class is really boning me. I've been studying like a mad woman." That part was mostly true.

"I see. Well, don't disappear like that again. I almost had to break my rule of no-contact with Sheldon and call him. I was going to ask him to go make sure you were still alive in your apartment."

Penny's throat constricted when she heard Amy say his name. "No," she forced a laugh. "That's not necessary."

"Okay, well I'll let you get back to it, then. Are you sure everything is okay?"

"Yes, Amy," Penny assured her warmly. "You are a great best friend. Say hi to Bernie for me. Girl's night this Friday, right?"

"Definitely. See ya later, girl."

Penny placed her phone on her nightstand and looked up at the ceiling. Added to the pain of Sheldon not contacting her, she now felt the fresh batch of guilt that she had been suppressing. How much would Amy hate her if she knew the truth?

* * *

Leonard was sore all over. Alex was killing him. The marathon sex was a nice thought in retrospect but he was getting too old for all the acrobatic positions she kept throwing at him. He glanced over at the passenger seat of his car and smiled at his girlfriend. Then he looked back at the road and wondered how bad she would take it if he suggested that they try and take a break from having sex tonight. He needed an ice bath and nine full hours of sleep.

The Thursday afternoon traffic was particularly heavy as they exited the Caltech parking lot so he took Euclid Avenue, Sheldon's approved route. Leonard's thoughts flitted to his roommate whom he had barely seen over the last few days. He hated to admit it, but he kind of missed him. Now that he was taking the bus to work and scamming rides from Raj or Howard to be brought home, Leonard felt the full extent of his best friend going through great lengths to avoid him.

He snuck a quick glance at Alex then eyed the road again before she could catch his gaze. Did Sheldon truly hate Alex that much that he was willing to write Leonard off? Or was something else, something deeper, keeping Sheldon at bay?

He thought of Penny and wondered if the accusations he had tossed at Sheldon last week were actually true. Did the crazy bastard really have feelings for his ex-girlfriend? All these questions were causing his frontal lobe to throb with a nagging pain, so he shelved them for now and parked his car at the curb.

Hand-in-hand, he and Alex entered the apartment lobby and conveniently caught Penny checking her mail. Her back to them, Leonard studied her perfect form, but shook his head, unwilling to stare. He had hurt her enough, therefore he wouldn't ogle at her, no matter how hard it was not to. He opened his mouth to say hello, but as she turned, his jaw snapped shut.

Her long, blonde hair was tied into loose pigtails and framed her sullen face, dark shadows beneath her once vibrant eyes giving Leonard a start. She paused, her body stiff as a board when she saw him and Alex before her.

"Hey," she said weakly, not meeting their eyes.

"Penny," Leonard said, immediately dropping Alex's hand. "Hi. What's going on?"

"Not much," she said lightly. She shrugged and offered them a view of the envelopes and circulars from the local grocery store in her hand. "Mail."

"Are you feeling okay?" he asked, unsure if that was the right question. What he really wanted to know was when the hell was the last time she got a good night's sleep.

"I'm great," she said flatly, finally looking him straight in the eye. "See ya." She pushed past him and headed for the stairs, not looking back as she turned the corner and disappeared.

"She doesn't look so good," Alex whispered. "I mean, it's not my business, but…"

"I know," Leonard said with a nod, still staring at the empty space on the stairs his ex-girlfriend had occupied. "I know. But it's okay, don't worry about it. Come on." He placed his hand back in hers and they started up the stairs in silence. But Alex soon spoke again.

"I think we're really having a bad effect on her, Leonard," she insisted, her voice still quiet in fear that they could be heard. "It kills me every time she walks in on us or we meet her in that lobby and she looks like she either wants to die or us to die." She sighed and Leonard rolled his eyes at her dramatics. "Have you given anymore thought to my offer?"

"Honey," he began. "I know you want me to move in with you and your friends, but your place is so small. And I can't afford another apartment so close to the university in my budget. It's just not something that is possible right now."

"It's possible," Alex argued. "My place isn't small, your place is just big. And you fill it with toys and video games." She rolled her eyes good-naturedly at him and he sighed in defeat.

"Look, I'm exhausted and starving, we'll talk about this later."

He squeezed her hand, assuring her that the conversation would continue. She gave him a small smile before they finally made it to the fourth floor. When Leonard opened his apartment door, he saw Sheldon sitting in his spot, listlessly staring at the television as a documentary on Roman Empire catacombs played softly on the screen.

"Hey, buddy," he greeted, letting go of Alex's hand again. "How's it going?"

Sheldon tore his eyes away from the TV and acknowledged Leonard with a small nod of his head. "Hello." Then he looked back at the screen. "Alex."

"Dr. Cooper," she said uneasily then shot a look at Leonard. "I'll be in your room, hon'."

"Okay," he said with a smile, watching her go. Then he focused his eyes back on his friend. He studied his face and tilted his head to the side, recognizing that surly expression as the one he just saw on Penny's face. Perhaps Leonard hadn't spoken to Sheldon in a few days and had missed a lot, but he couldn't miss this.

"Is there a reason you're eyeballing me or are you simply bored?" Sheldon asked lazily. He sunk lower into his spot, leaning his elbow on the arm rest, then rested his chin in his palm.

"Oh, no, nothing," Leonard said. He walked over to the kitchen and opened the refrigerator, in search of a snack before they ordered in their usual Thursday pizza from Giacomo's. "Hey, have you talked to Penny lately?" He watched Sheldon's face carefully and saw an infinitesimal shift of his eyes.

"No," he answered quickly. "I've been busy with work, and I assume she has as well."

"Oh, okay. Alex and I just saw her downstairs in the lobby—"

"Please don't tell me you were sucking face again and Penny was subjected to the disgusting display."

Leonard was taken aback by the fierce tone of Sheldon's statement, but for the sake of curiosity, he held back from showing it. "No, of course not. She was checking the mail when we walked in." He turned around to look for some bread in order to make a sandwich, and made sure he was facing Sheldon again before adding, "Anyway, she doesn't look so good." He almost smiled at the sudden change in his roommate's demeanor at the news.

"Doesn't look so good?" he echoed. "How so?"

"I don't know. She kinda looks pale, maybe like she's not getting a lot of sleep. Or maybe it's just an act." He was looking down his hands as he made two sandwiches for him and Alex when he heard the TV mute and the slam of the remote on the coffee table. He bit his lip again to stifle a smile.

"An act?" Sheldon asked, crossing his arms over his chest as he sat on the edge of his spot.

"Yeah," Leonard replied with a shrug. "She always looks mopey when she sees me and Alex together. Maybe she's just trying to get me to feel sorry for her. I mean, I kinda do." He paused and looked up to see Sheldon rise slowly from his seat, staring daggers at Leonard as he continued. "I have somebody, and well…she has nobody. No big deal."

The air was still as all of the universe's particles ceased to revolve around them. Leonard watched tiny explosions set off in the center of both of his roommate's pupils.

"Excuse me," Sheldon said curtly before hustling over to the front door and ripping it open. Leonard walked around the table and stood in the center of the living room as he watched Sheldon fall into his trap.

_Knock – Knock – Knock – _"Penny!"

_Knock – Knock – Knock – _"Penny!"

_Knock – Knock – Knock – _"Penny!"

Leonard crossed his arms over his chest as Sheldon pounded on Penny's door with a flat hand and furrowed his eyebrows. The lofty man quickly looked over his shoulder to see Leonard staring right back at him and gave him a haughty look before turning right back around as Penny opened her door.

"Sheldon?" she asked, a confused look on her face. Leonard saw a flicker of brightness cross over her pretty features before Sheldon blocked his view of her, squaring his shoulders to address her.

He spoke loud enough for Leonard to hear every word.

"Hello, Penny. I was wondering if you would accompany me to dinner this Saturday night. Just you and I."

Leonard waited a few beats and walked closer to the door, straining to hear Penny's reply.

"Really?" she asked, her tone so small Leonard felt his heart sink a little.

"Yes," Sheldon said, his voice lowering as well, the initial fervor he had shown to Leonard disappearing. "I…there's a lot that we need to talk about." His voice softened as he added, "And I've missed you."

"Okay," she breathed after a moment's hesitation.

"Great. I look forward to it," Sheldon said with sincerity that Leonard had not heard in a very long time. He watched as Penny closed her door, a goofy grin on her face just before she disappeared inside her apartment. Then Sheldon turned on his heels, his anger long gone and replaced by a satisfied expression mixed with something else that Leonard could not put his finger on.

"What was that?" he asked with a smile as his roommate walked past him and went back to his spot. This time, Sheldon sat down and unmuted the TV, his color returned to his complexion, and he gave Leonard a goofy grin that could have easily been the same face Penny wore moments ago.

"I have a date on Saturday night," Sheldon said simply before looking back at the TV screen. "No big deal."

Leonard nodded and walked back to the table where he continued to make his sandwiches. It took him a few minutes, but he finally put a name to Sheldon's expression.

_Smitten_, he thought smugly.


	8. Eight

**A/N: Hello. *flinch* I'm sorry! Don't hate me for the delay! Hate the enormous bolder called 'college' that wedged itself in between me and my muse. **

**Enjoy chapter 8.**

* * *

_Earlier that day._

Penny left work and drove home, steering the wheel and shifting gears courtesy of muscle memory since her mind was too far gone to put any real thought into her movements.

She was doing that thing women weren't supposed to do; looping her night on the phone with Sheldon over and over again, trying to figure out what had gone wrong, so much that it kept her up at night. Was it all a mistake? She blinked her eyes a few times as she sat at a red light, a small wave of pressure caressing her lower stomach as she remembered the sounds Sheldon made on the phone when he stroked himself on her command.

_No, _she thought firmly. _Not a mistake at all._

But over the last few days, having been avoided at all costs by the object of her new obsession, Penny suffered from a dull, distant ache. It felt as though someone had scraped her bones with a carving knife, molding her into this new, pathetic excuse of a woman. It hurt to wake up and think about him and it hurt just as bad at night when she lied back down. But why? Had it hurt this much with Leonard?

_No_, she answered her own question. _You broke up with Leonard. Sheldon is just your friend. _

She pulled up to the apartment building, put the car in park, and drifted out onto the sidewalk. She supposed that she was just missing his friendship more than anything else. Bernadette and Amy had been great supporters during her break-up, but there had been only one person she sought comfort from, even if the comfort was as blasé as walking up four flights of stairs while he went off on a tangent about the origin of French toast. Penny looked to Sheldon for some sort of normalcy after her life had fallen apart. But now that she had scared him off for good, allowing her baser urges to envelope them both into a session of phone sex, she was sure she had severed ties with her only ally in this whole city.

She opened the door to the lobby and went to check her mail. She blinked, trying to accumulate moisture in her eyes, not to cry, but only to quiet the discomforting burn that they constantly had. Her pupils were far too dry and she was worried that it was because she was dehydrated. She heard the door open behind her and knew that with just a drop of her bad luck, when she turned around, she would see Alex and Leonard. She was not disappointed.

And after a few words exchanged, Penny dashed up the steps, surprisingly unaffected by the visual of them two together. In fact, she was almost relieved to see Leonard; his presence alone reminded her that Sheldon was real and not a figment of her imagination. She made it to the fourth floor and allowed herself one longing glance in the direction of apartment 4A. She could bang down his door, walk right up to him, and demand an explanation for his behavior. But then that would mean Penny would have to look him in the eye and explain herself as well.

Why hadn't Sheldon come to her? If only to express his distaste in their actions, scold her? That would have been so much better than the silence. She entered her apartment, her shoulders sagged in defeat. Maybe she should just let it go. Maybe she should just move on. She was waiting for an immovable man.

She had been sitting on her couch staring at the wall for five minutes, weighed down by her thoughts of self-pity and plans to window shop for new apartments online, when the three loud slams on her door snapped her out of her trance. She held her breath and waited for the _Penny!_ to follow.

And it did.

She rose quickly from her couch and scurried to the door. It was all she could do told hold back from answering before he was finished with his third round of knocking. Taking a deep breath and smoothing a loose strand of hair behind her ear, Penny opened the door and came face-to-face with a pair of narrowed, blue eyes. He seemed angry at first, but after one full second, Penny watched his features soften instantly at the sight of her.

"Sheldon?" She dusted off her voice and spoke first. Her eyes immediately flicked to his lips and she watched him drag his pointy tongue along the pink skin there. Still mute, he brought his large hands together in front of him, resting them in front of him stomach.

"Hello, Penny. I was wondering if you would accompany me to dinner this Saturday night." He clamped his jaw shut as she blinked at him in shock. Then he opened his mouth to add quickly, "Just you and I."

She licked her own lips that were dry as sand and blinked a few more times. She knew she wasn't dreaming. He was really there. But she had to be sure. "Really?" she asked in a small voice.

Penny watched Sheldon's face fall. "Yes," he insisted, as if her question exasperated him, but his face was not unkind. She dared to think that this was his way of saying _'duh'. _Sheldon's eyes lowered, suddenly unable to meet hers, like a child being scolded. She could have sworn that the blush that stained his cheeks had not been there moments ago. "I…there's a lot that we need to talk about."

Here it was, Penny realized. Sheldon had planned to berate her for their evening on the phone. She felt her lips pucker, soured by what was on the horizon. She had the mind to just ask him to do it right now, to just put her out of her misery. If he planned to end their friendship, he didn't need to take her out to dinner in order to do it. She was about to say so when he opened his curved mouth and spoke again, his tone softening considerably.

"And I've missed you."

Penny's hand that clutched the door knob tightened around it so hard that she thought she may break it off. She hesitated only for a moment before nodding her head eagerly. "Okay." And for the first time in days, Penny's mouth stretched and she smiled. It felt so foreign.

"Great," Sheldon said with a mirroring grin. "I look forward to it." He stood still, waiting for her to disappear into her apartment before he left. Knowing he was still there when the door clicked shut caused an eruption of goose bumps to ripple down both of Penny's forearms. Her cheeks had begun to ache by the time she let go of her door knob.

* * *

Sheldon was still riding the high of what he had just done long after Leonard disappeared down the hallway and into his room to join Alex. He wiggled his fingers and the toes in his shoes, feeling the release of epinephrine soar through his veins before he finally came down. The volume of the television filled his ears again and his rapid heartbeat was suddenly very noticeable within his chest. He felt the vibrations of the thumping in his throat.

"What have I done?" he suddenly asked the empty living room and brought a sweaty palm up to his chest, clutching his T-shirt.

He tried retracing his steps; he was sitting here staring at the screen of the TV but not truly watching it or comprehending the pictures. His mind was miserably occupied by the startling realization that he missed Penny. And to make matters worse, Leonard had come strolling in with his harlot like a couple of hippies.

What troubled him next was the swirling of heat akin to envy that erupted within him when he saw them, joined hand-in-hand. Could this have been what the source of his hatred for Alex was truly was?

But he quickly shut the boiler room doors on that emotion and he reverted back to the television. Before long, Leonard opened his mouth, talking of Penny's hurt in such a preposterously nonchalant tone.

She was sallow, Leonard said. _Why?_ Sheldon wondered. _Were her circadian rhythms disrupted, thereby stunting the regeneration of proper amounts of melatonin to enter her blood?_

It was an act, Leonard said. True, Penny had impressed Sheldon last year with her dialogue during the production of _A Streetcar Named Desire_, but as of late, she had yet to show any consistency of polishing her craft. Surely, she wasn't acting.

Then Leonard said the wrong thing. "I have somebody, and well…she has nobody. No big deal."

Sheldon was sure he could have boiled an egg on his forehead with the heat of the fury that coursed through him at that moment. But he wasn't sure of whom he was angrier with: Leonard, or himself.

_"I'm right across the hall if you need me,"_ he had once told her. And if what everything Leonard had reported was true, she needed him now.

Penny had somebody. She had Sheldon.

And before he could inform Leonard thusly, he found himself at her front door, banging on it with his flat, open palm so hard he felt the tingle of pain long after.

When she opened the door, he was taken aback by how right Leonard was. She looked like a shadow of her usual self, a self that Sheldon had foolishly in the past dismissed as too bubbly, too loud, so electric it made him nervous. Instead, what he saw before him was not his Penny. So instead of words failing him when he saw her, like he had expected them to, Sheldon said the first thing that came to his mind.

He asked her on a date, and she had accepted.

Now, as Sheldon attempted to breathe in steadily and regain control of his faculties, the reality of what he had done sank in. A date? He detested date nights with Amy. He hated dressing up in ties and sports coats. He loathed dining in fancy restaurants where the waiter bashed them over the head for five minutes to taste their house wine before they finally offered them appetizers as expensive as an entrée.

Plus, he had made the date on Saturday night. What of his dirty laundry?

"I can't," he argued aloud. "I can't—" He shut his mouth as the image of Penny's pale face reddening ever so slightly when he told her that he missed her invaded his mind. A pink so enticing that it left him wondering if he had touched her cheek, would his fingers come back with traces of it?

And in that moment, Sheldon understood that indeed, he _could_.

* * *

"So, I might have done something that will solve our problem." Leonard stuck two of his fingers in his mouth and swirled his tongue around the mayo left there from his sandwich.

"That's gross," Alex quickly chastised him, swatting at his arm. He gave her a smile and she gave him one in return. "What problem?"

"Sheldon and Penny." He grinned, truly thinking he had succeeded in finding a way to put off moving in with his girlfriend for now, or at least, getting her to stop talking about it. Sheldon scowled at Alex every time she entered the room, and Penny looked about a hop and a skip from wasting away. Truth be told, the real reason that Leonard played a little game of matchmaker was because he was nowhere near ready to move in with his Alex. They had only technically been together for a month! He suddenly sympathized with his ex—this was all moving really fast. So if he could get Sheldon and Penny to distract each other for awhile, life here in the apartment could be a lot more pleasant…

Leonard was concerned about his friends. Perhaps pushing them together out of the goodness of his heart wasn't primarily what caused him to do it, but it was an added bonus. And if he was being honest with himself, he was _not _worried. Leonard took comfort in knowing that they would never turn it into anything serious.

"Well, a few minutes ago -" He was interrupted when his cell phone began to ring. He reached into his pocket with one hand while the other held up his index finger at his girlfriend. Studying the screen, he smirked and looked up at Alex. "It's Wolowitz. I'll put him on speakerphone so I can tell both of you at the same time." She nodded and he answered the phone with a flick of his finger. "Hello?"

"What up?" Howard's nasally voice rang shrilly through the iPhone's speaker, so Leonard turned the volume down and walked closer to Alex.

"Hey. I was just about to call you."

Howard grunted in irritation. "Why? Is pizza night cancelled on account of Sheldon losing his shit about Alex again? Really, Leonard-is she worth it? Is the sex that good?"

Leonard's thumb fumbled over the screen quickly to swipe the speaker phone option off. "Damnit," he muttered then looked up to meet his girlfriend's wide eyes and impatient expression. He mouthed an apology then put the phone to his ear. "Howard, shut up." He held his hand over the receiver before addressing Alex. "Going to take this out in the hall. I'll just be a second." Without waiting for her to reply, he slipped out of his room and marched to the bathroom for some privacy. When he was finally alone, he sat on the edge of the tub and sighed into the phone.

"What?" Howard asked, oblivious.

"Nothing. No, that's not why I was going to call you. Pizza night is still on." Taking a deep breath, Leonard continued. "I was just going to tell you something about Sheldon."

"Oh," Howard drawled. "Sounds like you've got gossip about the quack. So do I."

Leonard frowned in confusion. "Really? Spill."

"I think our androgynous friend has finally put his junk back to good use again."

At this, Leonard's eyebrows furrowed and he stared at the tile on the floor. "Excuse me?"

"Yeah. Kripke got him laid."

Immediately, Leonard's defenses went up. "What the hell, Howard? Don't tell me he got him to go to one of those anonymous sex parties that you and Raj were talking about."

"No, well, I don't know," Howard murmured. "I mean, all I know is that he hooked up with that chick Barry told us about. I don't know if he actually goes to any sex parties, but I'm sure it wouldn't be too hard to find out. Does he ever sneak out or leave without telling you where he's going?"

Leonard realized he had not talked to Sheldon often enough lately to keep tabs on him on account of the tension in the apartment, but he did remember the last night he saw him leave: it was on a work night and he was dressed all in black—the evening Leonard had apologized to him about their argument and accused him of having feelings for Penny.

He blanched slightly. "Balls."

"What?" His friend breathed heavily into the phone. "Seriously? He has? I thought it was a one-time thing. Oh, this is amazing! Who knew Dr. Looney Tunes had it in him?"

"Howard, listen to me," Leonard began. "You can't give him shit about this. Don't tell anyone else, either. I don't know for sure that Sheldon is going out and having sex with strangers, but I do know that it's wrong. It could be dangerous for him! God, I might have to talk to him. He can't continue to do that anymore."

"Now you sound like Koothrappali," Howard said. "Geez, Leonard, give it a rest. He's a grown man. What's the big deal?"

"The big deal is…" Leonard thought now was as good a time as any to let Howard in on his little experiment. "I sort of…got Sheldon to ask Penny out on a date."

"I'm sorry, what?"

"I only did it because I know they like each other," he lowered his voice before continuing. "And Alex has been riding me lately to get me to move in with her because she can't stand Sheldon _or _the way Penny stares at her, and I'm not ready for that so I figure if he and Penny spend more time together, it'll be a win-win…win-win."

"Okay, to be clear, you mean Sheldon _Cooper _and Penny—"

A light knock on the door caused him to rip the phone away from his ear on instinct. "I'm in here!"

"Leonard, will you be much longer?" Alex asked quietly.

Leonard brought the phone back to his ear and shushed a still talking Howard, cutting him off. He cleared his throat and spoke to Alex through the door again. "Be out in a second, babe!" He covered his mouth as he concluded the phone call. "I've gotta go. Look, just keep all of this to yourself. We don't need pizza night to turn into an inquisition."

"Fine, bye."

"Bye." He stuffed his phone into his pocket and walked to the sink, turning on the faucet. He ran his hands under the water quickly before turning the knob again and drying them on a towel hanging nearby. He finally made it to the door and opened it to find his girlfriend standing there, shifting her weight uncomfortably from foot to foot and looking over her shoulder, presumably keeping an eye out for Sheldon. Whenever he came around, Alex scurried out of the way like a kicked puppy.

"Hey, everything okay?" she asked.

Leonard wondered if he should tell her about Sheldon and Penny after all. He decided against it for the moment as a troubling thought crossed his mind; what was Sheldon _really_ doing, and what if Penny ever found out about it?

He made a conscious decision that he would have to approach his roommate about what Howard said sooner rather than later. But for now, he smiled warmly at Alex and led her back to his room, hoping to soothe her curiosity with some foreplay, regardless of how tired he was.

* * *

Though Penny was relieved that Sheldon was sort of speaking to her again, the anticipation of their date loomed over head like a pendulum, swinging this way and that with expectations and fear.

She woke up at 7:30 AM on Saturday. From years of experience waltzing into 4A to steal coffee, Penny knew that Sheldon would be up right now, too. She bit her lip, rubbing the sleep from her eyes as she stretched her body beneath the duvet. She had not heard another word from him since he had knocked on her door two days ago, and she feared that maybe he changed his mind.

"God, grow up," she growled at herself before rolling over and snatching her phone off of the nightstand. There were two people going on a date: Sheldon and Penny. Which meant Penny could take back a little control, too. So she flicked the screen and scrolled through the phonebook with every intention of contacting him. She needed to know where they were going, would he make reservations, stuff like that. She mentally did an inventory of how much cash she had in her account and how much gas she had in her tank. Just as her thumb hovered over the 'call' option, she paused.

"_Have you ever done this before?" _

"_Done what?" he asked. _

"_Sheldon. Have you ever had phone sex before?" _

"_No, Penny. I haven't."_

She shuddered, the memory of his husky whispers ringing in her ears. The last time her and Sheldon shared a phone call, things got sort of complicated. Instead, Penny settled for a safe text.

_- Hi, Sheldon! Just wanted 2 make sure we're still on for 2nite_

She nodded once and hit send before realizing she would never get back to sleep now. Reluctantly, Penny rolled herself out of bed and trudged over to her dresser beside the closet. She was going to go for a run. As she changed into her jogging pants and a hoodie, she kept glancing over at her silent cell phone. Could he still be asleep? A cold feeling shot through her veins like an injection as she wondered sadly if he had changed his mind. She headed to the bathroom to brush her teeth quickly and pull her hair up in a messy bun.

She stood by her nightstand, watching her cell phone as she stretched her body. Leaning over to touch her toes, a giggle escaped her lips before she could hold it back at the memory of the time her and Sheldon had once attempted to go jogging together.

"_Nice knees!" she complimented._

"_Thank you!" he exclaimed, slightly out of breath as he ran in place. "They're my mothers."_

Sighing, Penny tried to ignore the fact that he had not texted her and instead headed out of her bedroom, grabbed her keys and debit card along with her I.D. and stuffed them in her pockets, purposely leaving her cell phone on her nightstand. She rolled her eyes in the direction of her bedroom and opened her door, quickly stepping out.

A pair of shrill screams so high-pitched that she could not figure out which one belonged to who pierced the silent morning air.

"Fuck!" Penny exclaimed as she crashed right into Sheldon's body. A loud _thwap, _the noise of a full laundry basket falling to the floor, made her jump but she was unable to move out of the way for some reason.

"Are you okay, Penny?" his voice filled her ears along with his quick, shallow breaths.

Penny blinked a few times before comprehending the situation she found herself in now. She looked down first and noticed a pile of different colored slacks covering her feet and his white laundry basket turned over on its side in the corner. Her eyes traveled up slowly and she realized the reason she could not move was because she was being held flush against his body. Her right breast was smashed uncomfortably against his ribcage and she suddenly became hyper-aware of his long leg perched firmly between hers, his thigh stable against her pelvic bone.

"Sheldon," she breathed, finally allowing herself to look up at him. She swallowed once as she felt the swell of his chest against hers when he breathed. His freshly-bathed scent invaded her nostrils and made her head spin. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Sorry," he mumbled and regrettably, Penny felt him unwrap his hold around her waist and take a step back. She wavered slightly, the loss of his hold causing her to tilt. "You were about to fall, so I grabbed you." He looked down at his clothes on the ground before whispering another _sorry_.

"No, sweetie," Penny protested, shaking her head. She truly did not mind the contact. "I didn't mean that. I meant, what the hell are you doing outside of my door?"

"Since we will be out to eat this evening, I converted Laundry Night into Laundry Morning. The washing machines are equally as unoccupied right now as they would be tonight since the residents here at 2311 Los Robles will surely be recovering from hangovers and the weight of a full work week at this hour." He paused for a moment then quickly added, "Before I went down to the laundry room, I was going to slip this note beneath your door." And with that, Sheldon reached his fingers into his pocket and yanked out a folded sheet of white printer paper. "It's the time and location of our dinner date tonight." He held out the paper to her, still eyeing his clothes on the ground.

Penny couldn't help but smile at the appealing shade of red he had turned. _Looks like he didn't mind the contact, either_. She took the paper from him and placed it in the key bowl near her door. "Why didn't you just call or text it to me? Or hell, waited until this afternoon?"

Sheldon spoke quickly and mechanically, as if he had this answer rehearsed. "I did not know your work schedule today so I took it upon myself to write this note and slip it under your door. I know that any calls or texts made to you before 11AM, just like a knock on the door, would result in you causing me bodily harm. I could not wait until late this afternoon because I know that women tend to take a long time to get ready, therefore I wanted to give you notice of our reservations with plenty of time to spare." Finally, he looked up and met her eyes. He blinked slowly, as if seeing her for the first time. "Penny, what are _you _doing?"

She laughed, her shoulders rising and falling as she crossed her arms. "I was going for a run. I couldn't go back to sleep and it's time for my quarter annual bout of cardio, anyhow."

"I thought shopping was your cardio."

"Excuse me?" Penny guffawed, her arms dropping by her sides.

Sheldon blushed deeper and his hands went behind his back. He swayed his shoulders a little bit before glancing down at his clothes on the floor again. She wondered how much seeing them there on the dirty carpet bothered him.

"You once told me that shopping was your cardio. I thought it was nonsense back then, and I still do now, but far be it from me to try and dictate your fitness regimen."

"You remember me saying that?"

He gazed at Penny with a familiar, downcast frown and derisive shake of his head. "Of course I remember. I remember everything."

"Right," Penny said, shaking her head in unison. She marveled at how literal Sheldon Cooper took everything she said. "It was just a quote from _Sex and the City_. I didn't mean it."

"Oh," he mused, thoughtfully looking over her shoulder as if processing this new information. "Anyhow, I won't hold you any longer." He bent at the knees to grab his clothes and Penny smiled widely, stepping over the pants to go and retrieve his basket that had rolled into the corner. When she turned, she saw him staring at her as she bent over to pick up the item and quickly look away once he realized that she caught him looking.

"Here you go," she said softly, extending her arms to shove the basket in his direction.

"Thank you," he replied with a nod, emptying the load of clothes in his arms into the basket. Then he swallowed hard and took the basket from her, brushing his fingers against hers in the process.

"I can't wait for tonight," Penny said at the exact same moment Sheldon blurted something out as well. "What was that?" she asked.

"I…" He toed the carpet and avoided her eyes again. Penny thought she might pass out from how adorable he looked in that moment, all wide-eyed and pink. She allowed her eyes to travel down the length of him as he struggled with what to say next.

"I said," he began. "I almost called you last night."

"Almost?" She felt her breath quicken, wanting, needing for him to say more. "Why didn't you?"

"I…" he trailed off again, but only for a short time. "The last time we spoke on the phone, the situation got a little out of hand."

Penny nodded thoughtfully and Sheldon looked up at her with an expectant expression. She took a step closer to him, so close that she her stomach touched the laundry basket, pushing it softly into him. Then she chose her words carefully. "The way I remember it, our _hands _were very much in control of the situation."

She hoped she had phrased that right, as innuendo was a strong suit of hers but not so much Sheldon's. But when he let out a small _whoosh_ of air and fixed his eyes on her, eyes that got darker by the second, Penny knew he had understood her, loud and clear.

"Well, I'd better go run before traffic gets heavy," she said playfully, leaning away from the basket between them. She waited until he licked his lips and nodded. "See you tonight, Sheldon." She winked at him and pranced by, lifting her knees high as she jogged down the steps, smiling widely the whole way down.

An hour and a half later, Penny was dragging her feet up the stairs, in search of the cool air conditioning of her apartment and the release of a hot shower for her aching muscles. She passed apartment 4A and smirked lightly. Thoughts of her morning encounter with Sheldon had lifted her spirits like no other, and after the initial shock of seeing him there when she opened the door wore off, she remembered the tight, sturdy feel of his long arm around her, his bicep flexing slightly to keep her weight against him and prevent her from falling. And she shivered a little when she remembered his strategically placed thigh between her legs.

She entered her apartment and floated over to the bathroom, disrobing until she was fully naked, then switched the knobs on in the tub, allowing time for the water to get hot. She tip-toed out into her room and picked her cell phone up to check for any missed calls or texts.

There was one text from Sheldon Cooper.

- _Hello, Penny. We most certainly are still on for tonight. Can't wait to see you – and your hands._

* * *

Sheldon felt the itch spread on his skin way before he picked a suit to wear.

He stood at the mouth of his closet, leaning against the door as he held the knob, shaking his head at the selection of dress clothes he had. He thought about wearing the tie and white shirt he donned the night he went to Kripke's birthday party, but that just evoked memories of his escapade with Katie, and the last thing he needed was a physical reaction to the recollection of being serviced orally by another woman while was sitting across from Penny in a restaurant.

"Oh, this is a nightmare," he uttered to himself, staring up at the ceiling. He could not, _would _not, cancel. He lifted his palm and slapped his temple a few times, physically attempting to resonate this personal command when he heard Leonard shuffle in.

"Hey, what's going on here?" his roommate asked, crossing the floor until he met Sheldon at his closet. "Why are you slapping yourself?"

"I'm trying not to—" Sheldon cut himself off before he said something he regretted. The last thing he wanted Leonard to know was that he was having doubts about his date. It would only give him more reason to gloat about 'having somebody' and Penny 'having nobody'. Not on Sheldon's watch. So he brought his hand down and flicked his neck to face Leonard before answering again. "I'm trying to pick out a suit."

"Oh, for your date?" Leonard queried, quite unnecessarily. He knew where Sheldon was going.

"Yes, for my date." He sighed and turned back around to face the selection of clothing in front of him. Then he looked down at his body and frowned. What he was wearing now was suitable; he showered thirty minutes ago and changed into some navy blue slacks, his Green Lantern T-shirt and a lime green, long-sleeved undershirt. But what if Penny dressed up? Stupid question, he realized. She always dressed up. His thoughts drifted as he remembered her in the short, black dress that she wore the same night of Kripke's birthday…

"Are you going someplace fancy?"

"Yes," Sheldon muttered irritably. "I made reservations."

"Well, just wear a tie and slacks like you always did for date night when you were with Amy."

Sheldon whirled around and faced Leonard with a wild look in his eye and watched as realization blanketed over his friend's face.

"Sorry," he said sheepishly. "That was a stupid thing to say." Leonard walked past him and looked in the closet, scanning the clothes, but Sheldon walked away from it and headed towards the living room. "Sheldon!" Leonard called, following him quickly. "Don't get mad, it was a slip of the tongue."

"No," Sheldon said lightly, a smug smile on his face. "Usually, Leonard, I would agree that what you just said, was in fact, _stupid_. But instead, I must thank you." He picked up his wallet from his desk and strolled to the front door. Wrapping his fist around the knob, he turned back around to tell Leonard one more thing. "I own four dress shirts, five ties, and four sports coats with matching slacks, all of which I've worn while out on a date with Amy Farrah Fowler. Because of your so-called 'slip of the tongue', I realize that I will not wear any of those on a date with Penny. Goodnight, Leonard." And with that, he turned on his heel and exited the apartment, slamming the door behind him before his friend could say another word.

He took a few steps forward and made it to Penny's front door when he had to take a steadying breath. "You _will _do this, Cooper," he berated himself. If Penny was unhappy with what he wore, she would have to deal. He hated dressing up, hated fancy restaurants.

It all reminded him of Amy.

Sheldon rose his fist and performed his signature rounds of knocking. Penny answered promptly and gazed up at him, the small gush of air from the door opening so quickly causing her sleek, straight locks to fly around her face.

"Hi!" she greeted happily, bringing both of her hands up to one side of her head as she slipped a gold hoop earring into her lobe.

"Hi," Sheldon said lazily, the air knocked out of him at the sight of her. Penny wore a short, black skirt so devilishly revealing that he thought the sight of her knees and taut thighs alone would do him in. But then his eyes traveled far north and they met with the hour-glass shape of her figure covered by a form-fitting, off-white silk top. The golden buttons on the long-sleeved blouse were secured until it reached her bosom, leaving her cleavage, and the black satin bra that held it together, open for his eyes to enjoy.

She stood motionless, but he could still smell the fragrance of a fruity smelling perfume attack him from all angles. Sheldon's knees were suddenly weak and he lamented that a trip to the hospital to run tests on his suddenly elevated vitals could ruin their night, especially when she looked so radiant. For him.

"You okay?" she asked, breaking the silence. She smirked as he shook his head from side to side, then changed directions and began to nod.

"Yes, I'm fine, thank you." He took a deep breath and smoothed out his own shirt before looking down and paled at the sight. Why didn't he just put on a damn tie?

"Good," she said before stepping out of her apartment and closing the door behind her, causing Sheldon to take a step back to give her room. "You ready to go?"

He stared down at her in confusion. "But…I'm not dressed appropriately in a suit and tie."

"Okay," Penny said slowly, nodding at him as she joined her two hands together, clasping her black velvet clutch in front of her. "Neither am I." She rocked back on her high heels, heels so high that the sight of them alone made Sheldon want to pant like a dog. What on earth was happening to him?

"It doesn't bother you?" he asked dumbly, blinking at her profusely. "You're not upset that I'm not wearing a tie to a fancy restaurant?"

"No, Sheldon," Penny answered firmly. "It doesn't. If it bothers you, I can wait while you change. But our reservations are at eight o'clock, so…you know. Hurry up."

Sheldon felt gratitude mixed with something else, something so deep and heavy, that he could not put a name to it. He took a step back and appreciated the view of her standing in front of him for a moment before he licked his lips and spoke. "No, I'm ready to go now."

"Good," the blonde siren said cheerily before taking a few steps towards the stairs. "And I'm driving." This caused Sheldon to pause again as he quickly sifted through his memory bank to pinpoint the moment that Penny should have gotten upset.

When he dated Amy, he wore ties lest she lectured him on the proper attire and etiquette of a date. When he dated Amy, he had to bite his lip and frown apologetically when she grudgingly wished _she _didn't have to drive them everywhere, as it was the man's job to do so, so why couldn't he just try to get his license? When he dated Amy, Sheldon's feet dragged as he walked down the steps to endure a tedious evening, they didn't step lightly while he ogled at the woman beside him.

Sheldon had been so afraid of history repeating itself tonight, so adamant about remaining just distant enough not to allow himself to be suckered into another night of being someone who he wasn't just to appease Penny, that he didn't realize that maybe, Penny could just like him for who he was.

They entered the night air and walked in a comfortable silence to Penny's car parked thirty feet away. They reached the hood of the car when Sheldon made a quick decision and scuttled over the pavement, thrusting himself in Penny's way before she could walk any further towards the driver's side.

"What are you doing?" she asked, her eyes wide as she found herself face-to-face with Sheldon next to her door.

In response, Sheldon reached his long arm out and yanked on the door handle, wincing at the rusty, creaking noise it made as he opened it wide. Then he grinned down at Penny and nodded. "Opening the door for you."

* * *

If Penny was being honest, she would have predicted an evening of awkward silences, long lectures about health codes and fire exits in eating establishments, and the always uncomfortable _should I pay my half of the bill? _portion of the night. Instead, she was pleasantly surprised when the conversation in the car turned into a suggested detour right past the fancy restaurant and straight to the Cheesecake Factory, much to Sheldon's elated relief and Penny's as well.

When she opened her front door to him standing there like a deer in headlights, she wasn't surprised. She had known Sheldon for over six years now; she was prepared for his pair of big, awkward cold feet. Earlier that afternoon, she called in a few favors.

Now, they were sitting at a private table near the corner of the restaurant, an area with little foot traffic. Her friend Regina was kind enough to be their server that night and was even prepared for Sheldon's very particular method of ordering, only because Penny had not sugar-coated what was in store.

Once they had settled in and gotten their food, both Penny and Sheldon had taken solace in the distraction from talking, digging into their plates with vigor. It wasn't that Penny didn't mind speaking to Sheldon. They could sit and chat all the time. But most of the things he said went right over her head, and she didn't want to irritate him on their first date. Nor did she want to give him the opportunity to irritate her.

Sheldon swiped the bill from the table and placed his credit card in the black leather booklet without a word.

After their meal, they got back into her car and sat in more silence, but now it was beginning to take its toll. She cleared her throat and glanced over at him quickly, noticing the weak smile he gave her. "Are you alright, sweetie?"

"Yes," he answered evenly then looked out the passenger window and watched buildings go by. Unconvinced, Penny tried again.

"Are you sure?"

"I am," he assured her, but still looked out the window. Penny sighed and kept driving, waiting only a few seconds before he opened his mouth to speak. "I had a better time than I ever could have imagined with you, Penny."

"Um," she said, tilting her head to the right. "Thanks. I think."

"Oh," he said before turning to face her. "I mean that as a compliment. You accommodated me tonight when social convention dictates that the man should be in control."

"I'm sorry," Penny said, unsure of what to make of his second comment more so than his first. "I didn't take control away from you tonight, did I?"

"Yes," he said quickly. "You did."

"I'm sorry…"

"No, Penny," he insisted. "This was the deciding factor in allowing me to enjoy this evening with you. It was not what I expected. I had a good time." At this, Penny turned to smile at him but watched him bite his lip and turn away quickly. "A very good time," he added in a low, disbelieving voice.

"Well, I'm glad, Sheldon." She bit her own lower lip and took a deep breath before reaching out and lightly patted his thigh. She risked a glance and saw him stare down at her hand and stiffen, then scowl. She pulled it away quickly and he turned to stare out his window again.

_What was that?_ she wondered to herself.

The rest of the ride was quiet once again, but this time, it was heavy with tension. Penny realized she might have pushed it too far with the contact. It was innocent, no more invasive than any other time she lightly brushed against him or patted him on the leg. But she had to realize that these circumstances were uncharted. One week ago, Penny and Sheldon had phone sex. This morning, she had blatantly flirted with him in the hall, then he followed up by sending her a suggestive text. And right now, she just touched him.

She felt the panic rise in her throat as they pulled up to the apartment building and saw that Sheldon was already thumbing the door handle before she even had a chance to put the cark in park. When she did, he jumped out like his seat was on fire, and she bit back her emotion, unwilling to let him see her upset. Slowly and calmly, Penny got out of her car, locked it, then joined an antsy Sheldon on the sidewalk before they walked in silence to the apartment. She opened the door to the lobby and held it open behind her haphazardly, not truly caring if Sheldon made it in through the doorway before it closed on his face.

The ascension of the stairs was as painfully silent and awkward as if she were walking with Alex and Leonard trailing behind her. What had promised to be a nice, stress-free evening with her friend and admitted crush had turned to shit in a matter of seconds. Why did she have to touch him? Penny suddenly recalled the voice of her mother scolding her when she was a child.

_You need to keep your hands to yourself, Penelope. _

They reached the fourth floor, Sheldon moving silently and statically as a black and white 1920's MGM movie, and Penny walked towards her door before stopping. She felt the irritation build up and bubble over before she decided to tell Sheldon to go to hell. She opened her mouth and whirled around, but the command died in the back of her throat, dissolving into little pieces and fell back down her thorax.

Sheldon was looming over her, standing so close that she could stick out her tongue and taste him.

"Wha…what are you doing?" she asked, her voice laced with a hint of nervousness.

"You've taken control all night," Sheldon said suddenly, his voice slightly hoarse as he tried to keep it from wavering. He leaned his neck to the right to study her from a different angle.

"I'm sorry?" she tried, not sure she knew what he was getting at. She looked down as he picked up his foot and took a step closer, and she inadvertently took a step back and felt her rear come into contact with the cool metal of her door. She gasped at the proximity and rolled her tongue over her top lip. Sheldon watched her as she did it, then he watched it slip back into her mouth.

"I said, you've been in control all evening." He reached down and snatched the keys from Penny's hands, the sudden noise of their jingling startling her. "Do you mind giving up a little bit of control now?" Without waiting for her to answer, he looked down at her keys, isolated the one for the door, and stuck it in the keyhole before turning it. The lock popped then he pulled them out and handed the keys back to her.

He waited patiently for Penny to answer, his body still so close that she should feel stifled, but she only felt open, vulnerable. "Okay," she relented, unsure of what kind of control he was talking about. As she thought of the possibilities of what he was inferring, she felt a damp heat spread between her thighs. She held her breath as he reached down again and extended his arm behind her to turn the knob and open the door.

"Invite me in then, Penny," he said, his voice so deep she nearly felt the rumbling in his chest.

She racked her mind for a coherent thought and plucked one out of the mush her brains had become. "Would you like to come in for some coffee, Sheldon?"

"I don't drink coffee," he said simply, the darkness in his eyes never dissipating, but only intensifying as he smiled crookedly down at her. "But I'll take a Diet Coke." And with that, he walked around her and by the time she turned around, he was already sitting on her couch, waiting for her to join him.


	9. Nine

**A/N: Happy Halloween. Hope you find this chapter as delicious as your candy. ;]**

* * *

The date had gone better than Sheldon could have ever hoped. He had even warmed up to the waitress; although wary at first, she had proved to be a competent server. He left her a fifteen-percent tip and as they left the Cheesecake Factory side-by-side, he had teasingly mentioned to Penny that Regina was much more punctual with the arrival of their orders than he was used to. His neighbor rewarded him with a playful pinch to his ribs that sent a tingle down the fronts of both of his legs and back up again. He didn't flinch at her touch and he even leaned into her a little bit, a motion he didn't catch himself doing until he felt Penny's round backside brush against his thigh. Then she walked a little ahead as they crossed the parking lot, not even realizing what she had done.

Then, as they climbed back into her car and drove towards the apartment, Sheldon's resolve began to weaken. In such close proximity with Penny's fruity fragrance mixed with the strangely appealing scent of French fries between the both of them, he felt so comfortable, so relaxed, and a new feeling, an _emotion_ accompanied by the incessant fluttering along the inside of his stomach lining, that he couldn't name.

And it frightened him.

Sheldon's anxieties for the date were pacified by the familiar atmosphere of the restaurant and the conversation with Penny, but what he had not expected was the sense of flailing he experienced as she smiled at him from her side of the car, and he smiled back, buckling their seatbelts, blinking at each other goofily. He swallowed back the emotion and listened to his body then attempted to scale each inch of what he was feeling and form a hypothesis, just like a scientist would do.

Then the crashing realization tumbled over him as his heart thumped in protest against his rib cage: he craved Penny. He had to dig his nails into his palms to keep himself from reaching over and slipping his fingers in between her succulent thighs as she drove the car.

"I had a better time than I ever could have imagined with you, Penny," is what he told her, and it was hard enough to say this because it was not even close to sufficient. If he could bottle this evening, he'd shake it up and open it every night.

And then she reached over and touched the taut space above his knee. All of the control he had over his emotions, over his bodily desires, spiraled like a twister on a prairie, touching down on flat land and twirling wild with abandon. He found himself wondering as he sat back in his seat, if he had reached over and latched his lips to her slender neck to suck the skin there between his teeth, would she still have been able to steer the car straight?

So he faced his window and his eyes fluttered closed as he felt her hand snatch away from him. He summoned all the will power and remnants of Kolinahr that he could muster and focused on breathing evenly so that he wouldn't attack Penny, the possibility of the car crashing be damned.

_To touch her would be worth the risk_, he thought to himself. Which was precisely why he tried to shut down and resist.

When they finally arrived at the apartment, he scrambled out of the car, gratefully sucking in the fresh air to try and assemble his thoughts. He stood on the sidewalk and faced the brick building, jamming his hands into his pockets as he waited for Penny to join him. But she didn't even look at him as she walked ahead, making haste in her tall heels to the front door of the lobby. She flicked her wrist and opened the door, not waiting for him to slip in behind her before she let it close.

Sheldon Cooper was not an expert at reading body language by any means. Sure, he could solve any equation for general relativity to describe the curvature of space-time, but on principle, he was clueless to emotional cues. However after over six years of practice, he was getting better all the time at reading Penny like a book. And the proud, aloof posture she suddenly took on spoke volumes to him. She was ready to end the night with him sooner than he was ready to let her. He presumed it was because she was upset with his resistance to her touch in the car, but how could he explain to Penny that he was not accustomed to the emotions rising up inside of him? He was a man of science, falling to pieces at her feet. He was losing control.

Or was he?

An easy grin sprawled across Sheldon's face as he watched Penny's hips sway while she walked up the steps ahead of him, her chin high and her shoulders back. When they reached the fourth floor, she didn't stop and stalked straight over to 4B without saying a word to him. He advanced silently upon her as her back was turned. When she reached her door and whirled around, he nearly moaned at the tiny gasp she emitted, startled by his sudden closeness.

"Wha…what are you doing?"

"You've taken control all night," he told her simply.

Penny's icy demeanor visibly thawed as he took a step closer and snatched her keys away from her hands to unlock her door, maintain eye contact the entire time. She watched him with a slight aura of wonder. They exchanged more talk before he got impatient.

"Invite me in then, Penny."

Sheldon wanted, no, _needed_, to step inside of her apartment, be surrounded by her chaos, more than he ever needed anything in his entire life. The beast inside was growling.

And now, he was putting one foot in front of the other, slowly, steadily, until he made it to her couch and lowered his weight onto the cushion closest to her door. He turned and placed his fists in his lap then looked up at Penny expectantly. She stood awkwardly in her doorway, the light from the hallway spilling into her dark living room. He tilted his head to the left and studied her features; glossy, pink lips puckered, eyes wide open, arms stiff by her sides. She made no move towards him and he suddenly frowned.

"Penny?"

"Sorry," she said quickly, then shook her head before stepping inside and shutting the door behind her. She flicked on the overhead light and with the new brightness to assist him Sheldon could see her slightly flushed cheeks and darkened eyes. He watched her tastefully visible cleavage rise and lower as she walked around him to go to the kitchen. He smirked at the visible signs of arousal.

After she retrieved a Diet Coke from her refrigerator, she came back and met him in the center of the room. He watched her fingers curl and relax around the cold can that she held in front of him. He took it from her, nodding at her in appreciation. Sheldon wondered when she had time to go out and actually buy these; it was a fact Penny didn't like Diet Coke and only kept them in stock for him. He licked his lips as he felt control seep back into his favor.

"Sit," he ordered in a soft voice, motioning with his free hand to the open cushion next to him. She sat. He smiled.

"Sheldon," Penny finally said after a few moments of staring at each other. "I thought…" She bit her lip and looked down at her knees. Sheldon winced as she crossed her legs in his direction, her smooth shin exposing itself. "You seemed angry in the car. I thought I might have done something wrong."

Sheldon put his Diet Coke on the coffee table, no intention of opening it, and faced Penny. He blinked, not sure of what to say. In actuality, Sheldon didn't want to say anything. He wanted her to unbutton the rest of her blouse.

"I'm not angry," he finally said, his voice low, but she still did not look convinced. She chewed thoughtfully on her bottom lip and looked away, so Sheldon, once again, sought control. He took a deep breath and swallowed all of his apprehension before his hand darted out and fumbled along hers that lazily rested on her knee. She looked down, her eyes wide with bewilderment, and Sheldon relished the warm, soft skin that he felt there, in stark contrast with his clammy fingers. For the first time in as long time, he didn't want to squeeze copious amounts of sanitizer in his palm. He wanted to keep it there, firmly planted in hers.

Penny finally looked up and met his eyes before her smile ironed out the crease between her furrowed brows, letting him know that she believed him now. He exhaled in relief; on top of everything else he was feeling at the moment, having to deal with an angry Penny would have sent him over the edge. He attempted to get them back to where they were earlier, her pressed against the door while he hovered over her, commanding that she invite him in. Sheldon wanted that Penny back within his grasp.

"I had a good time with you tonight, too, Sheldon."

He nodded and his eyes zoned in on her mouth. The beast within him growled louder and rattled its cage.

"But I think we should talk now."

The beast was momentarily quieted as Sheldon snapped out of his trance and his eyes flitted up to hers. "Talk?"

"Yeah." Penny slowly pulled her hand out of his—he had forgotten that he was holding it—and flexed her fingers before placing them in her own lap. "About last week on the phone," she smoothed her hair behind her ears before continuing, "And how you ignored me for five days after the fact."

The beast groaned and sat on its haunches while Sheldon's eyes roamed around her apartment, looking anywhere but Penny's face. He suddenly felt very aware of everything around him; a textbook entitled _Introduction to Psychology_ and an iPod discarded carelessly on the floor in front of the television, an empty pizza box laid wide open on her counter in the kitchen, an overturned plastic cup sat on the coffee table along with nail clippers, a bottle of nail polish remover, and two flattened cotton balls tinged with pink.

"Sheldon." Her firm voice grabbed hold of his attention and he focused back on her as she spoke again. "You know we need to talk."

"Yes," he relented, knowing that asking her on a date in the first place began with this premise. "I suppose we do." He sighed and sat back a little as being so close to her proved to be a distraction.

"Sweetie, I know we went a little far on the phone, and I take full responsibility for it. I just…I can't explain it, but, it felt _right_. And I meant everything I said." She exhaled loudly, her lips vibrating against each other. He perched his eyebrow. "But then when you ignored me…"

The words came tumbling out before he could stop them. "I was scared." He cursed at himself internally for sounding so childish. Penny's eyebrows fell and her eyes widened.

"I'm sorry," she said in a rush. "I know I come on too strong sometimes, and I—"

"Penny," he interrupted. "I was scared…of how much I enjoyed it." _Much like I have enjoyed our date thus far_, he added quietly to himself.

"You…enjoyed it?"

He huffed and rolled his eyes upward, keeping them planted on a corner in the ceiling. "It was very obvious that I enjoyed it." Penny didn't speak and he didn't look at her, afraid of what he'd see on her face.

"I enjoyed it, too," she finally said after a moment of silence. "A lot. I enjoyed it so much that I was hurt when you didn't speak to me after. Why, Sheldon?"

Sheldon looked down and met her eyes. They were the same dark shade of green he had always admired, but something about how raw they appeared at such a close proximity had him struggling for the right words to say. He wanted to tell her that he missed her dearly in those days that followed. That instead of seeking sexual release from Katie as was his original plan, he touched himself every night to the memory of that phone call, reliving Penny's words, _stroke your cock faster, Sheldon_, over and over like a broken record in his mind, and he never lasted than more 60 seconds before he released, her name always on his tongue.

But then he would have to tell her about the shame that followed. She was his friend, his confidant, and the ex-girlfriend of his best friend and roommate Leonard. Nothing about this situation felt acceptable. Then he had seen her face on Thursday, thin and insipid, sad and meek behind her door when he asked her on a date. He had not seen her that way since the day he saw her crying on her couch after Leonard left her. And Sheldon hated thinking that _he _did this to her.

So he said the only thing that felt right—the truth.

"Penny, I experienced something that night. A very palpable and urgent…desire…that has not subsided, no matter how hard I tried to stay away from you." He paused and studied her reaction, but her face remained neutral, intent on letting him finish. He was grateful. "It seems as though my resistance was futile, being that I am sitting here with you now after days of absence and it's still there." He waited for her to berate him, tell him that he needed to leave.

Instead, she said, "That night, you told me that you…think about me."

Sheldon nodded then licked his lips quickly. "I have thought about you, even before that night." He closed his eyes and exhaled. "And you said that you…you think about me, too." He opened his eyes again in time to see Penny nod as well, slowly, deliberately.

"I really want to tell you a secret right now," she murmured. "But I can't because I'm afraid of what will happen."

His breathing sped up, along with his pulse. "A secret?" he asked. "You know I can't keep secrets, Penny."

"Not really a secret," she backtracked. "More like…a hidden fact."

He considered this for a moment before nodding at her. "You can tell me."

"Promise you won't go run off and hide for another week?" she challenged, a glint in her eyes. His mouth was dry as he nodded once. His neck ached from all the tight nodding, but he didn't trust himself to speak. "Okay," she said. With that, she placed both of her palms flat on the couch in the space between them and leaned over until her mouth was level with Sheldon's ear. His back was ramrod straight and he felt her warm breath wash sweetly over his neck as she whispered against his earlobe. "Every night, when I'm in bed all alone, I touch myself and pretend it's you."

Sheldon closed his eyes as she pulled away; he didn't want to see her when he revealed a hidden fact of his own.

"I do, too."

They were both finally quiet for minutes, maybe hours, but probably just a few seconds before Penny spoke again.

"Sheldon?"

"Yes?" His eyes were still closed.

"Can I touch you right now?"

His eyes fluttered open.

* * *

Penny was built as bold as they come, almost to a fault. She always knew exactly what she wanted and when she had it figured out, she would go for it, no questions asked. And all she could think about as the minutes passed by on the couch with Sheldon was how much she wanted to hear him speak to her in the same way he did last weekend on the phone.

"_How many fingers do you have inside of you right now?" _

"_Two." _

"_Add another," he growled._

Sheldon was right there in front of her, real and ever present, no longer just a memory of one wild night on her iPhone. She could see him, hear him, smell him, and even touch him. All that was left was to taste him.

"Sheldon?"

"Yes?"

She watched his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed hard, his eyes shut tight. Penny clenched her fists together and she pushed herself to ask what she had been dying to all night.

"Can I touch you right now?"

As soon as the words left her lips, Sheldon's bright, blue eyes fell open and she gazed hopefully at him, pursing her lips, daring him to say no. She watched as the emotions on his face changed like a slideshow from startled, to horrified, to curious, and finally to relaxed, almost like he understood from the moment he had her up against her door that this is what was going to happen. Instead of speaking, which was extremely out of character for Sheldon Cooper, he nodded once, granting her permission.

Penny had 6-feet and 2-inches of him to explore and she felt her fingers buzz with electricity, eager to begin. She scoured his body with her eyes, wondering where she should start, when she zoned in on Sheldon's chest rising and falling in quick succession. She reached both of her hands out until they touched flat against his shirt, her fingers tapping both of his collar bones. Slowly, she dragged her palms down, running them over the fabric covering his nipples, and he shivered beneath her. She smirked and kept dragging her hands down until they met at the center of his abdomen, the meat of his small tummy flinching slightly at the contact. She looked up to see his face and saw that his eyes were closed—this wouldn't do.

"Sheldon," Penny whispered. "Open your eyes." It took a few seconds, but he finally did. She saw fear and she faltered for a moment, wondering if she was moving too fast. She bit her lip and withdrew her touch, on the verge of apologizing when suddenly she saw a flash of movement and felt a strong grip on both of her wrists, preventing her from moving. She gasped as she realized it was Sheldon, holding her steady. His large fingers circled her delicate wrist bones, tight enough to feel the pressure, but not enough to hurt.

"Keep going," he insisted, his voice lowering to a delicious register. The fear that she had seen in his eyes was still there, but she nodded anyway and told him she would. He let her go slowly and she reached forward again, placing her hands back where they were, in the center of his abdomen. Then, he closed his eyes and his neck rolled back while he flattened his shoulder blades against the back of the couch.

Penny dared herself to look down below and saw the tent of his pants which assured her that she was not hurting him at all. She licked her top lip and separated her hands, dragging them lower until they reached his thighs. She stopped there, bunching the fabric of his pants between her fingers and he hissed as she pulled the slacks tight against his erection to see the outline of it.

"Sheldon," she said, staring at his bulge hungrily. "I'm going to unzip your pants now." He didn't say anything so she looked up and saw that he had his arms draped over his face, his nose buried in the crook of his elbow as if he couldn't bear to watch. For a moment, Penny thought about stopping again. Sheldon was obviously fighting an internal battle between wanting her to continue and holding back, but for what reason, she couldn't be sure.

Then she let go of her hold on his thighs as she remembered their conversation minutes ago at her door.

"_Do you mind giving up a little of control now?"_

When he looked down at her, questioning her with his eyes as to why she stopped, she crossed her arms over chest. "I've changed my mind."

"What?" he croaked, alarm crossing over his features.

"I want to give up control," she said with a small shrug. "Tell me what you want me to do." And in that instant, the fear dissipated from Sheldon's eyes and both eyelids narrowed at her.

"I told you to keep going," he said hoarsely. Penny saw a flicker of impatience cross his features and it alarmed her for a second, but she held firm.

"Tell me what you want me to do," she repeated.

"Touch me," he grunted, breathing through his nose. She could see a red flush crawling up his neck.

"Touch you _where_?" she dared to ask, keeping her arms crossed over her chest. Penny fought to stay true in this new direction, secretly anxious of the edgy glower on his face as he stared down at her, but peculiarly turned on by the insistence in his voice.

"Don't make me say it," he warned. Penny's mouth dropped open when his hands fumbled towards his zipper and he unbuttoned the fly. Her eyes lowered and she saw him lift his shirt slightly, a pale sliver of skin revealing itself to her. She licked her lips.

"Say it," she demanded, her voice wavering slightly. She dared another glance down in the direction of his pants and nearly moaned at how graphically his erection was staring right back at her through the barrier of the fabric. If Sheldon didn't take the control in less than five seconds, Penny was going to attack.

She didn't have to wait a second more before Sheldon's arms shot out and he resumed his grip on her wrists, yanking them from her chest. She gasped as he caught her blouse in his movement and one gold button popped off before landing on the nearby coffee table with a _ping_. Before she could protest, Sheldon took control of her hands by pulling one of them to his crotch; the thick, solid erection pulsating beneath her palm, and the other hand flew straight to his face where he enclosed his lips around her thumb.

"Sheldon!" she cried in surprise, the slick, wet muscle in his mouth swirling around her finger outweighing the shock of his size in her other hand.

"Touch me," he teethed around her thumb. Waves of pleasure built up between her thighs as Sheldon sealed off his command with the subtle suck of her finger. Penny went to work on him with her other hand, firmly cupping his balls. She moved her hand upward to push them against his cock and cried out when the vibrations from his approving groans went through her finger and shot down her arm.

Sheldon pulled her thumb out of his mouth and tugged her wrist closer to him, causing her to lean over him. "Unzip my pants," he said, his voice barely above a whisper.

Penny didn't wait for him to say another word before she pulled her hands free from his grasp and immediately lowered them to his crotch. She unzipped his slacks and pulled the fly apart and was met with a shock of white from his briefs. She lifted one hand and pushed it against his chest, urging him to lie down on his back. She stood up from the couch and allowed him to lift his lanky legs onto the cushions. He couldn't stretch them out completely, as he was so tall, but Penny lowered herself between his thighs anyway, sitting up on her knees and looking down at him.

"Lose your shirt," he ordered, and with a quick lift of her arms and flick of her wrist, the shirt was gone, leaving her in her black strapless bra and skirt. Penny went back to his crotch and yanked his pants down a little until the waist of his slacks was around his thighs. She looked up at him one more time and noted the bottomless blue of his urgent eyes, so wide and expressive she almost lost sight of the task at hand. After a moment, she lowered her gaze and hooked her fingers on the elastic of his briefs.

"May I?" she asked, perching her eyebrow high. She grinned at the full body growl Sheldon emitted.

"Yes, you may."

Then Penny pulled down his underwear to expose him to her. She marveled at the natural tuft of brown, sleek hair just above his shaft, not too much, but not meticulously groomed. She hated feeling stubble of a shaved pubic area on a man; it was so feminine in her opinion. But as the rest of Sheldon's cock revealed itself, _feminine_ was the last adjective she would ever use to describe the sight in front of her. Her knees shook a little at the thickness of his erection, the veins on the underside well-defined and the length so obscene she had a fleeting moment of unease. As it pointed up at her, accusing her, Penny wrapped one of her hands around it, immediately stroking it from base to head.

"Oh, God," came the weak moan from Sheldon. Penny looked up at him as she stroked his length again, up and down at a steady pace.

"What do you want me to do now, Sheldon?" she asked breathlessly, though she had about one hundred ideas in mind.

"Keep stroking," he answered her, hissing slightly as she thumbed the pre-ejaculate that oozed from his uncut tip. "Use your other hand to touch yourself."

She smiled, still stroking, and sat up straight on her knees instead of hunched over him. Then she took her free hand and rubbed it down her abdomen until she reached the hem of her skirt. She was delighted that Sheldon's eyes were now wide open to see it all. With a deep breath, Penny lifted her skirt slightly and reached under it, pushing her panties to the side with her ring and pinky finger before plunging her index and middle finger into her folds.

Sheldon's mouth was slightly slack as he his eyes flitted from her hand on his cock, to her hand between her legs. Penny whined a little as she orchestrated her ministrations, fingering herself and stroking him at the same pace. The hungry look on Sheldon's face added to her pleasure.

"Stop," he commanded suddenly and she did. Before she could ask why, Sheldon pulled her hand away from him and sat up straight. "Do you have panties on?" he asked with a grimace, slightly out of breath.

"Yes," she told him, her face twisting in confusion.

"Then come here." She watched him sit up straight on the couch, his slacks still around his knees, and pull his underwear up to cover his erection. After he situated himself, he waved her over and she scooted towards him on her knees then lifted the right one over his lap, effectively straddling him in two seconds flat. He brought his hands to her waist and held her down firmly, pushing his rock-hard erection up against her sensitive lips.

"Shit!" Penny cursed as a thousand nerve endings shrieked in response to his contact. Her head dropped until her chin rested on her chest. She blinked profusely, steadying herself by placing her hands firmly on Sheldon's shoulders while he bucked up into her again, the fabric of his underwear roughly rubbing the flimsy material of her lace panties. After the initial shock of this new position and her body adjusting to these sensations, Penny's hips finally got the hint and began to roll forward against Sheldon's coordinated thrusts. She forced herself to open her eyes and stare straight into his as he studied her with mirroring intensity.

"Penny," he panted, his grip on her waist sliding down until his hand disappeared underneath her skirt and he cupped her ass roughly with both hands.

"Sheldon," she answered, rolling her hips again. "You feel so fucking good."

In reply, Sheldon gasped, then lifted her up by her rear and slammed her down onto his erection, causing their shouts to collide and stars to fill Penny's vision as she felt the familiar heat erupt deep between her legs.

She leaned forward to kiss him at the same time Sheldon reached up and grabbed the cup of her strapless bra and yanked it down, exposing her left breast to him. He stared at it hungrily and Penny froze mid-pucker as he hesitated for only a moment before reaching in and nibbling at the hardened nipple, perfectly in time with his next dry thrust into her. When his tongue joined in on the contact, Penny threw her head back and shifted her hips wildly, crashing into him over and over again until her clit was stimulated by his thrusting to the point of no return. Her orgasm soaked her from head to toe.

"Fuck! Oh…Sheldon!"

"Yes!" He ripped his mouth away from her breast in time to shout as he came as well. Penny felt him twitch beneath her throbbing walls and slowly felt the dampness of his underwear from his release against her own. She slowed down her bucking and pressed her forehead against the crook of his neck. After his moaning finally subsided, she felt his long, lean arms wrap around her waist and pull her naked chest against his before she burrowed her arms between his back and the couch cushion. They sat that way, Sheldon cradling her body to his until their breathing returned to normal.

"Penny," he whispered into her hair, tapping her spine with his long fingers. She shuddered before pulling away far enough to look at his face. "I need to go clean up."

"Of course, sweetie," she said quickly before pushing herself up and off of him. She collapsed onto the other side of the couch and watched as he stood up gingerly, pulling his pants up with him. Then, he shot a shy smile at her before he walked around the couch, his pants still unzipped, and headed towards her room in the direction of her bathroom.

When she was finally alone, Penny bit her lower lip to fight back a giggle. She hugged her arms to her chest, her bra back in place, and looked up at her ceiling, playing back every single second of what had just happened. She let her eyes flutter closed as the lustful expression on Sheldon's face filled her vision, accompanied by those damn butterflies again.

After a few minutes, when Sheldon still had not returned, she stood up and yawned, stretching her arms high into the air as a strange wave of fatigue came over her. After waking up so early this morning for her run and never napping the entire afternoon, sleepiness had finally caught up to her, especially after the ride Sheldon just took her on. She looked around the living room until she saw a basket of clean, unfolded laundry on top of one of the stools near the kitchen. Her knees wobbling slightly, Penny walked over to the basket to search for any comfortable clothes to change into; the tightness of her skirt, which had lifted up around her waist while Sheldon had repeatedly thrust against her, was cutting off her circulation.

* * *

Sheldon closed Penny's bathroom door behind him and turned the tiny brass lock out of habit. Then he whirled around and walked to her sink, switching on the knob and letting the water run down the drain for a few seconds as he got his thoughts together.

He brought one hand down to shift his spent member around but frowned at the discomfort of his soaked underwear. So after a moment of reasoning, he yanked everything from the waist down off, placed his underwear on the tile of the floor, then put his pants back on, but not before wiping off his penis first. Then he folded his underwear and placed it in a dry wash rag he saw hanging over Penny's towel rack. Sheldon made a note to take the underwear and towel back to his apartment to wash them both before returning the rag back to Penny, perhaps discreetly slipping it into her basket on laundry after he fully laundered it.

"Oh, boy," Sheldon finally murmured after he had washed his hands thoroughly and turned off the sink. He caught his reflection in the mirror and wondered who was truly staring back at him. Penny had figured him out in seconds by allowing him to dictate how she touched him, what to do. Was he truly this transparent?

He thought of how easy it was to demand something of her and have her readily supply him. It was nearly everything his nighttime fantasies of her had been. He took a moment to gather inventory of his residual feelings, and he realized that this sexual release left him feeling lighter, giddy almost.

After coitus with Amy Farrah Fowler, Sheldon had always felt irritated, quick to be rid of her afterward. And it was in no way a testament to her, he had realized, but rather a personal after effect that he could not control. Having sex with her just did not make him happy.

And after his oral services from Katie, Sheldon had always felt anxious, slightly out of sorts, like what he was doing was wrong.

But with Penny, it felt right and strangely like _home_. He couldn't figure out if this worried him or not. If what they had just done excited him this much, how would actual intercourse feel with her? What of his genius, his professional life? Sheldon shuddered, unwilling to think that far yet. Penny was a very active participant in their session on the couch but he could not be so bold as to think she would want to do this again, let alone engage in intercourse.

With a deep breath, he tucked his underwear folded inside the towel into his back pocket and slowly trudged back into the living room, wondering what kind of state he would find his friend in. Would she be angry? Did he in any way take advantage of her? Would she be filled with regret, with doubt? He entered the living room and silently walked to the couch, where he found Penny, freshly dressed in tiny pajama shorts and a tank top, fast asleep across the aqua cushions.

Studying her for a few moments, Sheldon suddenly remembered the look on her face before he had pulled down her bra in the heat of the moment; she had puckered her lips and leaned into him, and he was almost certain in that instant that she had intended to kiss him. But Sheldon had never kissed anyone before, well, not beyond a simple peck on the lips from Amy a few times—he didn't count the egregious, drunken assault by Leonard's mother. He found himself wondering if he could kiss Penny without disappointing her. He watched her lips, slightly parted as she breathed lightly, and tried to imagine himself placing his own mouth upon hers. The thought alone sent a tingle up his thighs so intense that he declined to think further into it, lest he develop another erection.

Reaching quietly over Penny, he pulled the afghan off the back of the couch and placed it over her, tucking in her sides and brushed a strand of hair out of her face until it was neatly back in place with the rest of her locks. As he was pulling his hand away, Penny stirred and her arm shot up, grabbing his hand with hers. He watched as her eyes fluttered open and she blinked up at him, smiling warmly. His apprehension that she would be upset with him flew away like dust in the wind as his heart beat faster.

"Don't go, I'm awake," she insisted, slowly pushing her body up with her free hand, her other one still locked around his. "Sit next to me."

"Okay," he said, immediately folding his body and joining her on the couch. He sat back and stiffened slightly when she casually draped her arm over his chest then lied her head down in the crook of his arm. Sheldon realized that they were, for all intents and purposes, cuddling. He tried not to recoil, as the feeling was not unpleasant, but truly strange.

"How are you feeling?" she asked after a few moments of silence.

"I am well," he said carefully. "Penny?"

"Hmm?"

"I am sorry for your shirt. My behavior was abhorrent."

"Sheldon," she said firmly before lifting her face to look up at him. "Do not apologize for that. I don't think I've ever been more turned on in my life."

He shook his head, disbelieving every word. "I manhandled you."

She waggled her eyebrows as he frowned. "Boy, did you ever."

"You're not angry with me?"

"No, I'm not. I promise." Her playful grin faded for a moment and Sheldon watched her as the wheels metaphorically turned in her head. He found himself studying her pink lips again until she finally spoke. "But I do think what we just did, well, it all happened very fast."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean…" She paused then pushed herself up straight so that she was facing Sheldon completely. "I mean that our situation? It is unique. You are my best friend, Sheldon Cooper. The last thing I would ever want is for our friendship to dissolve because of the complications that…" She motioned with her hand the space between them, "…stuff like this brings. You know? If it doesn't work out, I still want to be friends."

"Penny, I don't want to stop being your friend," Sheldon said hurriedly, a slight twang of panic reaching his voice.

"No, neither do I," Penny assured him, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder and rubbing it. "What I'm saying to you Sheldon is, well…I have been doing more than just thinking about you at night. I think about you during the day, too." She lowered her eyes to her lap and pulled her hand away from his shoulder, placing it between her legs as she crossed them Indian style beneath her. "I mean, Sheldon. I have feelings for you. Romantic feelings. And what we just did, while I don't regret it at all, well—" She looked up and met his eyes, the glistening he found there taking him aback. "I want to be more than your friend. I want to be more than fooling around on my couch and phone sex. I want _more_."

Sheldon swallowed hard as his head swam with her words. "More?"

"I know we both just got out of long-term relationships, and goddamnit, with our respective best friends." Penny lifted herself from the couch and faced away from him, leaving him with a sudden feeling of loneliness as he sat still on the couch and watched her pace in front of him. "Sheldon, I'm sorry, I'm not mad at you, I just…I never thought this would happen. I always had a crush on you, really, but not until recently did I ever allow myself to think that maybe, just maybe, you could feel the same way. And if all this was to you was a one-time thing, believe me, I will understand, but you have to tell me, you've got to, Sheldon, because I—"

Sheldon lifted himself off the couch as she rambled on and by the time she turned around, he was directly in front of her. She cut herself off and stared up at him with those round, emerald eyes and heart-shaped face and Sheldon steadied himself with a shaky breath before he placed both of his hands on her arms and squeezed gently.

"You moved into apartment 4B at 2311 Los Robles Avenue on September 27, 2007. On September 28, 2007, I was stirred from sleep by my very first dream about you." He paused, watching realization trickle down her face. "Six years and one month later, no one has infuriated me more, brought me complete joy, showed me as much unflinching loyalty, or have reappeared in my dreams as often as you, Penny." He watched the tears brim her eyelids and like the night he saw her cry over Leonard, he was not repelled. He was drawn in. "I agree that we have found ourselves in quite a complicated situation, and I admit that I have fought against this, how I feel. I fought this from the beginning. But I cannot, will not, anymore."

"Sheldon," she whispered as she leaned into his touch. "Don't hurt me. Please. I couldn't take it."

His heart pounded harder as her words, so weak and yet powerful at the same time, resonated with him. Words failed him, so he followed his instincts, instincts that were reserved for unlocking the mysteries of the universe, armed with heartbreaking, graceful physics, and instead he cupped her cheek, lowered his mouth to hers, and poured everything he had into his first, real kiss.

Sheldon had, after all, been waiting to do this since the day she moved into apartment 4B.


	10. Ten

**A/N: I tried so hard to update sooner. But when I had to take a bio exam, write a 12-page economics paper and a five-page philosophy paper, then had to initiate corrective action on an employee at work ****all in the span of 10 days****, any waking hour I had to myself I used for sleeping. And a little bit of eating. Mostly sleeping. I'm not even close to be recovering, btw.**

**Excuses, excuses! I'm back, babes. I don't foresee myself going missing again for so long (pending how bad my finals week will be next month), but if you ever wonder what the hell my deal is, I have a link to my Twitter and Tumblr in my profile. I update all the progress of my fics on both and post previews of chapters. You can yell at me on there, too, if you'd like. **

**Okay, shaddup, tx-fictionqueen. Time for chapter 10.**

* * *

_How many muscles did it take to engage in kissing?_ he wondered, his mind moving in slow motion as all of the blood it regularly took to maintain optimum performance in his brain went rushing into the southern regions of his body. _It requires 34 facial muscles and 112 postural muscles. That's right. _

Maybe he was wrong when he assumed that he knew all of the facts associated with kissing. For instance, he could not figure out what accounted for the sudden swelling in his chest and the random, numb-yet-electric-at-the-same-time tingles birthing somewhere around the base of his skull and rounding out in his groin. And the noises he made, good Lord, the rumbling in his throat was hardly appropriate. Later, Penny would assure him that she did not mind the noise at all.

He noted that after the initially timid approach of his lips touching hers, and the forfeit of his equilibrium after Penny swiped her heavenly tongue across his, Sheldon's body responded astutely. His fingers kept curling around the fabric of her shirt, bunching the cotton until his knuckles ached, and his toes curled simultaneously in his shoes. If she leaned back, he moved forward without instruction. If she pushed into him, he opened his arms wider to invite her in.

And when she mumbled, "_Sheldon_," against his lips, he answered back with a hum of acknowledgement.

_Yes, that's my name. Say it again. _

He grew hard all over again when she lowered her hands to his waist and her two index fingers snuck under his shirt to touch the skin of his lower back. Slightly ashamed at the knee-jerk response of his body, he slightly shifted his hips to the left so that Penny would not feel the rigid evidence between his legs. He felt like an adolescent teen unable to control himself.

These interesting biological developments awakened him, warranting all of the distaste he once had for swapping saliva with another human being so passionately as invalid. So this is what kissing was, a conversation between two people when actual words failed. Sheldon knew deep down that he could do this for hours with Penny.

_Could one achieve orgasm from kissing alone? _he wondered some more as she swirled her tongue around his and sighed into his mouth.

In silent agreement, they parted abruptly for a breath at the same time, a loud _smack_ sounding as the plump skin of their lips pulled away from each other. Sheldon stood there, hovering over Penny, staring down at her with wild eyes and she mirrored his glare. They both were breathing heavily like swimmers after a meet.

"Whoa," she whispered, studying his lips hungrily.

"What?" he asked breathlessly, his eyes locked on her face. Had he done something wrong?

"I…" Penny folded her body over and placed her hands on her knees which made Sheldon very nervous. He took a step back and peered down at her, wondering if he should call E.M.S. Before he could ask, she quickly straightened her back and began to fan her face with her hand. "Sheldon, that was…really hot."

He brought his hands down and clasped them together in front of his crotch. Somehow, he knew exactly what she meant. "I enjoyed it, too," he said shyly.

"Let's sit down," she suggested, walking over to the couch without waiting for him to answer. "I need to catch my breath."

"Alright." Sheldon joined her, sitting a distance away to give her some room.

Penny's face was bright red and she had a hard time meeting his eyes, and this both concerned him and intrigued him all at once. She always had a way of doing that to him; forcing him to see things from all angles, making him search for the source of her reactions to him. She didn't lower her eyes to the floor when Leonard was in close proximity to her like she did around Sheldon. And no other man Sheldon had seen Penny interact with caused her to blush so fiercely, so quickly, and so attractively. The quieted beast stirred within him. He cocked his head to the side as he watched her take a few steadying breaths, her chest rising and falling, when only minutes ago her breast had been in his mouth. He shuddered as she spoke again.

"Where do we go from here, Sheldon?" she asked in a small voice. When he furrowed his brows and shook his head, uncomprehending, she quickly clarified. "I know you're Sheldon Cooper. I'm going to have to be a lot more specific with you." She cleared her throat and met his eyes. "I like kissing you. Do you like kissing me?"

"Yes," he answered without hesitation. He felt his body scoot closer to her on the couch without a conscious thought.

"Do you like…" she bit her lip and Sheldon blinked a few times at the sheer eroticism of the act, urging the fire kindling inside of him to not burn so brightly. Continuing with a coy smile, she said, "Did you like doing what we just did on the couch?" She pointedly glanced at the cushions.

"Yes, Penny." He gulped audibly and looked down at the couch as well. "You know that I did." In fact, the only thing that kept Sheldon from freeing his erection and plunging deep inside of her was the fact that he did not have a condom on him. Or at least, he liked to think that was the reason he kept himself from having actual coitus with her.

"I liked it, too," she purred. "Do you like me, Sheldon?"

He nodded, unable to trust his voice. It was difficult putting into words exactly how he felt about Penny now that the dam had bursted and every desire, every emotion he had been suppressing for seven years came rushing through, so for now, he would not even attempt to. Not until he had a moment to himself to reflect on what he was doing. Penny's hand wriggled beneath his closed fist, attempting to gain purchase on his fingers. He relented, opening his hand and enveloping hers. Then he looked up and watched her as she spoke.

"I like you, too," she told him. "But can we take this slow?"

It was like she could read the apprehension on his face. It worried Sheldon how legible he was becoming, but he was grateful she suggested it. "Yes, slow," he said, licking his lips. "Slow would be good."

"Yeah," Penny agreed softly with a smile. She smoothed her hair behind her ear with her free hand. "And we should keep this to ourselves, too."

"How do you suppose we do that?"

"I don't know," she admitted with a frown. "We could act normally in front of the guys, but when no one is looking, we can continue to figure out whatever is going on between us." She let go of him suddenly and and covered her eyes with both of her hands. "Oh, no, that sounds so _bad_. I just don't want to hurt Amy. And Leonard, well, I could really care less about how he feels, but I don't want to make things harder for you. And I _really_ don't want to be that girl, the one who goes out with her ex's friend, _that_ kind of girl I was in high school, you know? Oh, God, of course you don't know…" She rambled on a little bit, her hands still covering her face.

"Penny," Sheldon began, touching her wrist and pulling it away so that he could see her eyes. "I understand. And I agree."

"You do?" she asked, her face twisted with confusion.

Sheldon supposed he should be offended by her assumption that he did not normally take others' feelings into consideration, but she was right. He was not ready to let anyone know about him and Penny, not out of fear of hurting Amy and Leonard, but mostly because he still had not figured out what he was getting himself into. And Sheldon relished his privacy almost as much as his comic book collection.

"I believe I do," Sheldon answered slowly. "I suppose it is socially unacceptable to do…whatever it is we just did…with your best friend's former lover." He looked down and sighed. What _was _he doing?

Penny must have caught his hesitation because she placed her hand in his again. "Hey, look at me." He did, meeting her eyes. The soft lighting in the living room did little to dim the green hue that drove him wild. "We can keep this between us. Figure out what it is we want before anyone has to know. I know you don't like keeping secrets, but don't think of this as a secret you're keeping from your friends. Instead, think of it as an experiment where only authorized personnel are allowed to see it."

"Authorized personnel," he echoed then smiled sideways at Penny. "Just you and I."

"Yes," she giggled, her hold on his hand still firm. "These things are better in private, anyway. I wouldn't want anyone to see me do this." And with that, she leaned forward, placing her free hand flat on his thigh then rubbed it upward, dangerously missing his cock that twitched slightly at the contact. Then she brought her mouth over to the side of his face and lapped at his ear with her tongue, eliciting a hiss from him. She bit down gently on his lobe and breathed warm air on the assaulted area which resulted in an involuntary buck of his hips upward. Before he could process another thought, she leaned away from him and he moved forward, attempting to capture her but she jumped off the couch and stood before him.

"Penny," he warned, his fists tightening in his lap as he fought the stirring between his legs. She was unknowingly taking a stick to the cage of the beast and running it along the bars.

"Remember," she reminded him with a glint in her eye. "We're going slow."

"Very well," he agreed grumpily after a few deep breaths. But his ear was still tingling where Penny had nipped at him and he couldn't help but feel a little sore at her teasing. He had a sudden vision of himself leaping up from the couch, whirling Penny around in one quick move while pinning her wrists behind her with one hand, the other hand snuggling its way into the front of her shorts. How easy it would be to do it, especially if he caught her off guard. And for this very reason, he knew he had to leave at once.

Sheldon hoped he wasn't making a mistake by participating in this "secret experiment" with Penny; could he control himself around her? His aggressive, sexual nature had already showed its face when he grabbed her wrists on the couch earlier, effectively ruining her blouse. Sheldon knew that Penny was dominant by nature, but as any anthropologist could explain, there could only be one alpha. If this were to work, Sheldon would have to remain in control, every step of the way.

But for now, he was aching for a clean change of clothes as semi-erect penis rubbed uncomfortably against the inside of his slacks. Sighing, he rose from the couch and gave her a curt nod. "Goodnight, Penny."

His limbs were fluid and a little wobbly but he finally reached the door before Penny called his name, like he knew she would. _Who's really in control here?_ he thought smugly before he tossed her an innocent look over his shoulder.

"I don't get a kiss goodnight?" she asked sadly, pouting her lower lip.

Considering her for a moment, Sheldon shrugged nonchalantly before taking two long strides towards her, getting so close that she flinched at the proximity, not expecting for him to get there so fast. She became startled and sank down on the aqua cushions as Sheldon loomed over her, placing his hands on the back of the couch, on either side of her head, trapping her beneath him. He pressed his knee into the cushion dangerously between her legs, causing her to spread them to give him room. He kept leaning forward until she was pressed all the way back and her eyes widened in slight fear, a healthy panic that sent a wave of pleasure rippling across Sheldon's abdomen. He brought his lips close to hers, hovering in front of her until there was only a centimeter of distance between them, so close that Penny closed her eyes in anticipation and he felt a small _whoosh_ of air leave her lips and wash over his face.

"Not tonight, you don't," he whispered. Quickly, Sheldon pushed off the couch and stood up straight before heading towards her door again. He didn't turn around as he closed it behind him and stepped lightly to his apartment, grinning evilly the entire time.

Don't rattle the beast's cage.

* * *

Leonard's body ached when he woke up the following Monday morning. He was grateful that he had made Alex stay at her place the previous night. His bones creaked under his weight as he stood up then sat back down, stretching his arms over his head. He thought he was coming down with something, perhaps the flu he hoped, but probably not. He still had an appetite and wasn't very feverish, just a little out of it. Maybe he would fake illness when he saw Alex at work; it would warrant a little space from his girlfriend who had become attached to his hip as of lately. He crawled out of bed once again when he heard Sheldon vacate the bathroom and proceeded with his morning routine, feeling crummier with every passing minute. He figured he would get as much work done as possible today then take the next few days off to recover.

"Oh no, are you feeling ill?" Sheldon asked as they both stood in front of their desks to gather their things when it was time to go.

"Yeah," Leonard answered groggily, appreciating the concern Sheldon appeared to show.

"Then wear this," his roommate said flatly, all concern gone as he yanked open his desk drawer and pulled out a paper mask (he had an entire box of them in his desk) worn by the likes of surgeons and nurses.

"No thanks," Leonard said with a roll of his eyes, waving Sheldon away as he pushed it towards him. "It's probably just allergies, nothing contagious. The weather is changing and you know how sensitive I am to the cedar blowing in."

"Well, I can't force you to wear it, but you'll have to agree to drive with the windows down this morning so that I won't be held prisoner in a cesspool all of your germs."

"That's not a bad idea," Leonard panned. "Or, you know, you could always walk. Or take the bus. Or how about learning how to drive and buying your own car?"

He opened the door and stepped into the hall, making room for Sheldon to follow him out. He was tired of the tension between them lately, but at least Sheldon was talking to him now. Yesterday, Leonard even tried asking politely about his and Penny's date on Saturday, but his roommate remained mum, save for a quick, "Pleasant." He kept his eyes open for any signs of Sheldon's body language that resembled the misery he had felt the week before, but found none. In fact, he rarely moved around all Sunday afternoon, opting to sit in his spot and watch TV for the most part. Sometimes he texted on his phone and would grin to himself goofily or chuckle quietly before replying to whoever it was on the other end. But other than that, he was business as usual, and Leonard hated to admit how curious he was that he wasn't giving up more details about the date. At least the giant baby was tolerable to be around again, and from that Leonard could deduce that it went well enough.

"Or you could wear the mask," Sheldon said sternly, breaking Leonard's concentration.

_Correction: barely tolerable_, he thought irritably. "Or you could go to he-"

Leonard's suggestion was interrupted by the slam of the door from across the hall. The two men looked up in time to see Penny, her blonde, wavy tresses framing her face and dressed smartly in gray pencil skirt, black tights, and a white pea coat that hugged her shape. She proceeded to yawn loudly, her mouth opening so wide that they could see her tonsils. _Not very lady-like, but still so attractive in the morning_. Leonard looked away quickly, chastising himself for his thoughts.

"Morning, fellas," she greeted cheerfully, causing Leonard to whip his head up and study her with a bewildered look.

_Since when was she so cheery in the morning? And towards me?_

"Good morning," he said with a slight hint of discomfort. He watched as she ignored him completely and walked closer, her eyes on Sheldon the entire time. Then Leonard's gaze traveled up to his left and his eyes nearly fell out of his head when instead of the normally disinterested, bordering uncouth expression Sheldon wore when his schedule was interrupted, he saw a knowing smirk upon the lips of his best friend as he stared down at their neighbor.

"Hello, Penny," he said smoothly. In that short, casual greeting alone, Leonard thought he could sense ions of meaning.

He cleared his throat as the silence stretched on, neither of them looking away from each other. It made his skin crawl. "Uh, where are you headed, Penny?" he tried initiating small talk, hoping she wouldn't bite his head off for addressing her as she usually looked like she wanted to do.

"I have a job interview this morning," she announced, finally breaking eye contact with Sheldon as she acknowledged Leonard. "It's for a manager position at the Cheesecake Factory. Not a huge bump in pay, but I'll take what I can get. Plus, it's more stable hours."

"Wow," Leonard gushed, genuinely impressed. "I'm really happy for you, Penny. Good luck."

As she nodded gratefully, she met his eye for a moment but then looked away when Sheldon started to speak.

"Yes, Penny," he began. "Good luck."

"Thanks, boys," she said happily. Then she motioned towards the stairs with her arm. "Shall we?"

Soon, the three of them were headed down the stairs, Leonard taking point. When they reached the third floor, he realized how imbalanced he suddenly felt, walking alone in the front as Penny hung back and walked side by side with Sheldon. It was all so surreal, and a tiny part of him that still missed her began to ache. Before he could dwell on it any further, his thoughts were interrupted by a quiet snicker behind him. He longed to turn and investigate, but something stopped him. He wasn't sure he wanted to know.

They finally reached the bottom floor and exited the lobby, the two men parting from Penny as she walked swiftly to her car.

"Good luck again, Penny!" Leonard called with as much friendliness as he could muster, but she ducked into her car before responding.

He shrugged and opened the doors for him and Sheldon. They climbed in and when Leonard turned on the ignition, he immediately reached for the heater. Like hell he was going to ride with windows down today. He glanced over at Sheldon who sat buckled in his seat and stared vacantly out of his window, silent as ever. In the reflection of his glass, Leonard could see the lopsided grin plastered on his face.

He realized about ten minutes later as they wove through traffic that Sheldon was still clutching the paper mask in his hands that sat in his lap, yet he never mentioned another word about sitting in a cesspool of germs with the windows up. But he did hum quietly to himself the entire drive.

* * *

Sheldon tried settling his nerves by rationalizing that today was like any other day in his adhered to schedule: Tuesday nights were reserved for his barbeque bacon cheeseburger at the Cheesecake Factory. The fact that he had touched himself in the shower this morning to thoughts of the woman who would serve him his food tonight should hold no weight. But it did. Sheldon was living a double life.

They arrived in two cars—Leonard and he in one, and Bernadette, Howard and Raj in the other. Making their way inside the restaurant and sitting down immediately, as it was a slow night, Sheldon occupied himself by fiddling with the menu, though he didn't need it.

This would be the first time that he interacted with Penny in front of the entire social group rather than just in front of Leonard. When they had initially agreed to continue on in secret, Sheldon believed he could treat this experiment like any other professional endeavor. He would be business as usual with Penny, not awarding her any special treatment nor warranting her more attention than he usually gave her in front of the others. Except he had not accounted for the airy, feather-lightness in his step and swirling in the pit of his stomach he got every time he saw her after that night on her couch. And how much pleasure he got from their long talks on the phone at night.

He had been weak yesterday morning on the stairs as the three of them descended the steps. With Leonard none the wiser, Sheldon had very nearly groped Penny in the stairwell, unable to control himself. And later that night, when Leonard had fallen asleep, he tip-toed over to her apartment where they made out on her couch until he thought he would crudely bust inside of his flannel pajama bottoms. They stopped before it got too far, as neither of them had been ready to engage in intercourse just yet.

And now they would withstand the biggest test tonight, which was to act accordingly in front of their friends. His hands trembled slightly until his menu began to rattle in his grasp, then he set it down and looked around the table. Only Leonard had noticed.

"Sheldon," Bernadette suddenly said as they waited for Penny to reveal herself. "Have you talked to Amy?"

Sheldon did a double-take at his tiny friend Howard's tiny wife as the question threw him off. Even Howard, Raj, and Leonard looked at the woman with wide eyes as Sheldon took his time answering. "No," he finally said. "I have not. But why would you ask a question like that when you undoubtedly already know the answer? Are you and Amy not confidants anymore?"

"Of course we are," Bernadette snapped. "I was just wondering if…well, I miss having her around more often. And I was wondering if you would mind if she were to join us for dinner every once in awhile."

A hush fell over the group. Sheldon's eye twitched ever so slightly as they waited for him to answer. He exhaled quietly before finally looking at Bernadette again.

"No, I don't mind if Dr. Fowler joins us for dinner. It appears as though she is still part of the social group and it doesn't affect me either way."

"Thanks, Sheldon," Bernadette murmured gratefully. He nodded tightly at her before looking off in the distance. Sheldon couldn't figure out what made him so jumpy about the prospect of Amy rejoining their group for dinner every once in awhile. He had no residual feelings for her. Perhaps Penny would know what the uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach was.

At the thought of Penny, a wave of discomfort washed over him—how did he think he could do this? Keep this a secret? He was sure everyone could see it on his face, plain as day.

There was Raj, studying him with a knowing, solemn look that he kept trained on him ever since the afternoon he gave him a ride home and accused him of having feelings for Penny.

Then there was Howard, who kept shooting him periodical, skeevy smirks ever since he found out about his night out with Katie (or at least assumed he knew what happened).

Lastly, there was Leonard, who always presumed to know more than he really did. But how could he be sure that Leonard didn't already blab to the other two that Sheldon had went out on a date with Penny? Had the pair already been found out? Were all of their friends thinking the same thing, that Sheldon Cooper was a slave to his baser urges? Maybe they thought that he was weak, that his human half was eclipsing his intellectual half.

Quickly realizing that he was not cut out for this double life, Sheldon began to breathe a little unevenly. How could he tell Penny that he was folding? That perhaps this wasn't a good idea after all? There was that damned feeling again, the flailing, the loss of control of his faculties. Would she hate him?

And then he saw her from across the restaurant.

She was wearing the same Cheesecake Factory uniform that she always wore, and her hair was up in a tight bun like it usually was when she was tired from working all day, but it was her face, the sheer glee and excitement that she was carrying something and bursting at the seams to share it. She nearly skipped the entire way to the table and Sheldon inhaled sharply as he marveled at her face, her infectious enthusiasm transmitting to him. It was the happiest he had seen her in so long. He suddenly wanted to know what put that smile on her lips so that he would know how to keep it there every day from here on out.

Something shifted in his heart as she walked directly up to Sheldon, ignoring the rest of their friends, and beamed down at him.

"I got the job," she breathed.

While Raj and Howard asked her what job she was talking about, and Bernadette and Leonard crowed their congratulations, Penny didn't even offer them a glance. Her eyes stayed fixed on Sheldon's, waiting for him to say something as he continued to look up at her. Right then and there, every fear and loathsome thought of his weakness, his inability to share something special with her, melted away. And something else took its place. It was a warmth in his chest that spread like fire, then traveled up and curled his lips. He thought it might be _pride_.

"Congratulations, Penny," he said quietly. "I knew that you would," he added, meaning it.

* * *

After Penny had stuck around for a few more minutes to take the orders from her friends and thank them for their well wishes, she reluctantly walked away to tend to her other tables. She sighed dreamily as she envisioned Sheldon's awed smile and sincere congratulations when she told him about getting the job. She half-expected him to shrug her off, explain to her that it was just a step up from a menial position of waitressing, but he continued to surprise her. He seemed genuinely happy for her, which warmed her heart. It was all she could do not to grab him by the shoulders, pull him up to his feet, and kiss him right there in front of everyone.

Everything was normal, except that it wasn't. She found herself craving his attention in front of their friends, even when they had explicitly agreed to keep things under wraps.

Her body literally was calling for Sheldon. When Penny had suggested that they go slow and not reveal their actions to anyone, she hadn't known Sheldon would be so good at it. It was as though everything they did never happened.

But oh, it happened. They spoke every night on the phone. On Sunday night, Sheldon asked her to put the phone down near her vagina as she fingered herself so he could "hear it". The morning before, when she bumped into him and Leonard as she was leaving for her interview, Sheldon had slipped his hands down to the hem of her skirt, casually running his fingers along her inner thigh before quickly pulling them away, in fear Leonard would turn around and see them. And then there were their secret make-out sessions on her couch.

She didn't want to keep what they had a secret—she wanted to shout about it from the rooftops. But everything was still very new, and they had promised to take things slow. All of the emotions Penny felt though were coming in tidal waves. Had she ever felt this strongly before this _quickly_? If she truly thought about it, she had always had feelings for Sheldon, but never acknowledged them before. Perhaps her body was just playing catch-up?

She floated on a cloud for the rest of the evening, sneaking winks and smiles at Sheldon when they thought no one was looking, and interacting with all of her friends as they finished their meals. As they got up to leave, Bernadette pulled her to the side.

"Hey, I talked to Sheldon earlier about Amy," she said quietly as they were still within earshot of the guys who were signing their credit card receipts.

"What do you mean?" Penny asked, her heart thumping faster at the sound of Amy's name.

"Well, I feel like we're all of Amy's closest friends and it's not fair that she can't hang out with us because of Sheldon. But he told me it's okay, that she can come have dinner with us whenever she wants to. Isn't that great?"

"Yeah, of course," Penny insisted, nodding quickly. "Do you think she'll want to?"

"I'll have to ask her," Bernadette admitted. "But I know for a fact she has been missing Sheldon lately, so maybe this will be good for them, you know? Perhaps the distance has made their hearts grow fonder."

Penny's blood ran cold as she registered Bernadette's words. "Amy told you she missed Sheldon?"

"Yeah," her friend nodded sadly. "Poor thing. Well, we'll talk about it more later. Congratulations, boss lady. You really deserve it."

"Thanks!" Penny squeaked, hugging Bernadette close as she tried to block out this new information about Amy, who had failed to confide in Penny about her feelings for Sheldon. She tried not to wonder why. Bernadette turned around and rejoined her husband and the guys who all waved at her before retreating. She studied Sheldon's back as he walked out with the group without looking at her. She sighed, her high suddenly deflating.

As she gathered the black folders with all of the signed credit card bills inside, she opened them to pull out the cash tips and stuff them in her apron. When she finally opened Sheldon's, she did a double-take.

Written below his signature was a tiny message: _See you tonight_.

Penny smiled widely despite herself. She couldn't wait to get home.

* * *

Sheldon yawned for what seemed like the tenth time in one minute. It was well past midnight, and he had been sacrificing his R.E.M. cycles enough for the last three days that he did not think he had it in him to stay up another night waiting for Penny. She had texted him fifteen minutes earlier saying that she was almost home, and he had half the mind to reschedule their meeting, but night time was the only time they could see each other if they were to keep up this experiment in secret.

Plus, Sheldon wanted to congratulate her properly for her achievement today. And discuss several things on his mind. He only had to stay up a few more minutes and he would see her bright, happy face again. Just a few more minutes…

* * *

Penny tried so hard not to take it personally when Sheldon didn't answer his phone. It was 1:30 AM and he was no doubt asleep. He was the type of man who was in bed by ten o'clock every night and their nightly phone conversations or make-out sessions were taking a lot out of him. But she wanted to see him so badly, needed to see him. She sat on her couch in her pajamas, studying her iPhone in her hands; if he didn't hear his phone ringing the first three times, he wouldn't hear it on the fourth. Or perhaps he still had it on vibrate. Either way, Penny realized drastic measures had to be taken.

Maybe it was the prospect of Amy coming back into the picture that drove her to act so desperately. Maybe it was the memory of Sheldon's wide, proud smile after she told him that she got the promotion that made her dig to the bottom of her panty drawer looking for the spare key to apartment 4A. Maybe it was the anticipation of his hands on her that moistened her center and made her walk quietly across the hall, insert the key in the lock, and slip into the silent living room filled with action figures and academic journals. Maybe it was all of the above.

Whatever the reason, Penny suddenly found herself walking barefoot down the hall and stopping at the second door on the left—Sheldon's room.

* * *

Sheldon was no stranger to vivid dreams of the carnal nature, especially as of late. At first he had been ashamed, irritated by the betrayal of his endocrine system as he tried to sleep when an image of Penny would materialize and he would engage in self-abuse, even when he was still mostly asleep. But this dream was more like a distant memory and much more intense.

The sensation of tugging began at his waist and he hissed, his eyes still shut tight as the cool air of the room kissed his suddenly exposed groin. He fisted the sheets beneath him as something wet glided across his skin, quickening the erection process at an almost record speed. He was at attention very quickly and the tugging continued, only this time, he lifted his hips and soon he was cold all over from the waist down.

"Mmmm," he groaned, wanting the warmth to come back, but was unable to move. He could feel his mind tumbling towards consciousness as the sensation of suckling and pressure enveloped him whole. His eyes fluttered open then closed again just as another involuntary groan escaped his lips.

"You taste so good," Sheldon heard someone whisper.

"Thank you," he replied lazily, unsure of what else to say. This dream was tripping him out. He pressed his head further back into his pillow as the warmth returned and spread to his scrotum, leaving his cock exposed to the cold air. "Ungh," he gurgled as one of his hands let go of the sheet beneath him and instinctively went to his crotch where he was met with silky strands of softness. He curled his fingers between the strands, tangling them in it.

In response, he felt a humming sensation against his balls. Sheldon's hand used the tangled strands in his grasp as leverage. As a result, the pressure intensified.

He finally opened his eyes in time to look down and see himself pushing Penny's blonde head of hair down onto him, then watched as his entire length disappeared into her mouth.

"Fuck!" he barked as the head of his cock rubbed the back of her throat. He was startled by his own language as well as the unexpected sight of her face bobbing up and down between his legs. It was everything he quite literally had ever dreamed of.

Soon, his hips were moving up in sync with Penny's suckling and he knew that it would only be a handful more of pumps into her wet mouth before he would come wildly. "Stop," he pleaded, releasing his tight grip on her hair. "I'm going to…"

"Come in my mouth," she commanded quickly before latching onto his shaft again, very lightly raking her teeth against his length as she worked him up and down. He gasped at the familiar demand and brought one fist up to his teeth to bite on his fingers and stifle his cries as the other hand resumed and pushed her head down, gently coaxing her to take him in her mouth completely. He bucked his hips once and shuddered as his ecstasy pulled him under. He lay rigid as he continued to come in hot bursts, the only movement now from Penny as she hungrily swallowed every last bit of him.

When it was over, he very nearly fell back asleep, the force of his orgasm so strong it took everything out of him. But when he felt the soft fabric of tissue from his nightstand wiping his spent member down clean, then the subsequent warmth of his underwear and pajama bottoms being pulled back up to cover him, his eyes shot open again.

"Penny?" he croaked sleepily. "Where are you going?"

"Home," she whispered in the dark. He could faintly see the outline of her body standing near his door as the moonlight poured in from his window. "I just had to see you."

"No," he mumbled. So exhausted, he could not articulate, so instead he picked up his hand and waved her over before scooting slightly to the right side of his narrow bed. "Here." It took a few seconds, but she finally got the hint and was soon standing at the foot of his bed.

"Sheldon, you won't be able to sleep, there's not enough room. It's okay sweetie, I'll go now and see you tomorrow."

"Get in my bed before I tie you down to it," he rumbled. He was convinced his voice resembled the growl of a beast.

"Sheldon Cooper," Penny whispered in shock. "Watch your mouth." He felt the bed shift as she lowered her weight to the mattress and slowly made her way up to him. She wriggled her body close, facing him, and pressed her pelvic bone right up against his as he wrapped his arm around her waist and lowered his face to her chest.

"You watch my mouth," he instructed, speaking against her skin. Very slowly, as sleep threatened to overcome him, he lifted her tank top higher and higher until he could see one exposed breast through the slits of his eyes. His mouth fumbled around until he found the nipple, rolling the hardened peak around with his closed lips before he felt her arch her back, pushing herself into his mouth. Then he closed his eyes and took her nipple between his teeth. His tongue soon joined in, relishing the warmth of her soft, plush skin against his taste buds.

"Oh, Sheldon," she breathed, squeezing his shoulder weakly with her hand that wasn't trapped between them.

_Yes, that's my name, _he thought smugly_. Say it again. _

And she did.

* * *

**A/N pt 2: Sorry for another stupid author's note but GUYS. Your reviews and PM's and encouragement on Tumblr and the forum...I can't even begin to describe how happy you all make me. Thank you _so _much for all of your support. **


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